Your IQ Isn’t A Prerequisite For Success: Here’s What You Really Need To Succeed In Life

You have a high IQ and you’re still unable to have a productive and successful life. Well, I’m sorry to break it to you but it’s very likely you have overestimated your intelligence levels.

Ever since I was a child I remember people telling me that being the smartest is a guarantee that you’ll achieve both personal and professional success. But, is this really so?

I frequently meet people who have a high IQ but are still struggling to reach the high levels of the success hierarchy. And vice versa – there’re people who stand high in society but their success can’t be attributed to their intelligence.

So, whether it’s emotional or financial success, or success with your family, it turns out that you need to possess other qualities to smoothly pave the path to it. It’s not that intelligence is unimportant, but one thing is for sure, it’s overrated.

Additionally, besides the intelligence necessary for you to think abstractly and solve abstract problems, there are other forms of it, such as moral, emotional, and body intelligence, which play an important role in your search for success.

Moreover, things, such as hard work, perseverance, creativity, good communication skills, and learning from failure are all overlooked, but they certainly are a prerequisite to success.

In what follows, there’s a description of each of these things:

Hard work.

“Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds.” – Gordon B. Hinckley

Success is not magic. Success isn’t something that is dropped aside your door. Something that is achieved overnight. Maybe you think that success is only attained by people who are naturally talented or people who were born under the lucky star. But, you’re wrong.

Real successes happen as a result of hard work and determination. You can’t grow personally if you’re not willing to learn new things, break your bad habits, change your routines, and become a better version of yourself. You can’t improve your career if you don’t put in the effort.

You can be the most intelligent and talented person in the world, but without hard work, it’ll be impossible for you to get to the top and maintain your position there.

 Perseverance.

“Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”  – Newt Gingrich

The path to success is paved with many hardships and obstacles and it’s up to you to decide whether or not you’ll quit or soldier on. Of course, when you pursue high goals, you’ll come across many difficulties. But, who said life is easy?

Perseverance means that you have the determination to overcome all the roadblocks you come up against on the path to your success and work your way up to the top.

Creativity.

“When you can do a common thing in an uncommon way; you will command the attention of the world.” – George Washington Carver

Having original ideas and imagination can help you create something new. Whether it’s a plan, an invention, or some work of art, it can definitely make you stand out from the rest.

Again, you don’t need to be a naturally gifted person in order to be creative. You just need to be open to new ideas and perceptions. You need to be curious about learning and trying new things and gaining new experiences.

Moreover, being creative doesn’t mean you have to create something from scratch. Using old information and presenting it in a new way will do the job.

Communication skills.

“Communication – the human connection – is the key to personal and career success.” – Paul J. Meyer

You can’t succeed in life without establishing good relations with people. And what’s the best way to do that than by having good communication skills? You need to always be willing and patient to listen attentively to the person you’re interacting with.

Additionally, showing respect and understanding of other people’s ideas and opinions is what can help you relate to them more easily.

Moral intelligence.

You can’t expect others to treat you well if you don’t treat yourself with respect and kindness. If you possess moral intelligence, it means you’re not afraid to take responsibility for your actions and stay true to yourself.

Additionally, treating others with respect, kindness, compassion, and tolerance shows that you relate well to others and how you feel about yourself too.

Emotional intelligence.

Being emotionally intelligent enables you to easily recognize and regulate your and the emotions of other people as well. It also helps you control your strong emotions, so when you find yourself in situations that make you feel uncomfortable, upset, and angry, you’ll know how to react appropriately.  Moreover, it enables you to motivate yourself to achieve your goals.

Body intelligence.

In our fast – paced lives, we devote the least attention to our bodies. Yet, if you possess this kind of intelligence, it means you’re aware of your body and know how to take care of it. You know that eating healthy food, having enough sleep, and exercising are necessary to keep your body in a healthy state.

Yet, if you think your body intelligence levels are low, don’t despair because there’re ways in which you can improve this. First of all, you need to learn to listen to your body. Then, make your health your top priority. And finally, make sure you make time to practice the above – mentioned healthy habits every day.  

Learning from past mistakes and failure.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill

Failures are a part of everyone’s life. Yet, you should know that by focusing your attention and time on them, they’ll interfere with your happiness and success – and that’s something you should never allow to happen.

You need to use them as valuable lessons which can teach you something new and make you more prepared to deal with new challenges in the future. You need to always believe in your abilities and remember that there isn’t anything you can’t achieve if you want it so bad and keep yourself motivated.

Image: Ma_Co2013