So you think your smarter than everyone else because you score 120.

A score of 120 would put you in a the category of very superior intelligence. Okay so you are smart but don’t get excited yet genious. To be a genious you have to be above 120. You may have scored high today but next week if you take the same test you could score lower. Many IQ scores are adiministered with a cultural bias and your technique for testing could be different than mine.

If you felt good on the day you scored well but took the same test while you were sick or under the weather you could very easily score much lower. IQ scores can be manipulated.

Suicide and your IQ is there a correlation?

During  a 26 year period in Sweden, a study was conducted on over 980,000 men who tested low on an IQ test. Through constant follow up and careful study, the test which ended in 1994 showed that over 2800 men committed suicide. So how was their IQ score a factor?  Let’s examine shall we?

In the overall population of the United States it is determined that the suicide rate among the overall population is 2.7%.  The suicide rate among all the low IQ scores of  Sweden is far less than that. So what did that prove? Well nothing really. In 1961 Ernest Hemingway committed suicide and he was tested at the genious level.

People who commit suicide have terrible coping skills.

What about Academically?

If you take two students with an equal amount of self discipline and the will, to do well in school the higher intelligent scoring child will outperform the other. However the biggest determining factor in how well a child does in school is determination and self discipline. One experiment that was conducted that could determine academic progress was conducted with two students. Both were given a choice of having a cookie right then and there or two cookies later. The one that chose to wait and get the bigger reward later, performed better in school.

That’s self discipline at work not an IQ score.

So what good is an IQ test.

IQ tests are great for measuring yourself against your friends and may make you feel superior but don’t let the score determine your lot in life. Let your drive, determination, and motivation determine your end results.

Training your Brain for Intelligence

Our brains are a very complex muscle and in order to gain more intelligence you need to train your brain like you any muscle that you want to build up. You’ve heard the saying “ You are what You Eat” right? We’ll this is the same thing except you could use the famous saying “junk in junk out”.

If you are at a point in your life that you would like to start excelling expect to ease your self into some lifestyle changes. These five easy tips will get you back on the right track.

1. Shut off the idiot box!

This is also known as the TV.  There is a channel on TV called “Junk Food TV” this actually should be called crap for your mind. Watching hours and hours of tv is actually very draining. Have your ever sat in front of the tube watching a game or some tv marathon and felt just totally drained afterwards? That’s because you are just watching garbage.

Why do you think advertisers spend so much money on advertising on TV? Because once your mind is numb your mind can be controlled. There have been studies on this very same thing.

2.Start a workout program.

People really do underestimate the power of a good work out. Lazy people look at it as a chore while others of us look at it as a way to feel good and look good. However, getting the old blood flowing with a good run or weight lifting proves to help you focus with clarity and for longer spurts.  That’s why so many gyms are open early in the morning. The people who work out in the morning use that exercise as a catapult for the rest of the day.

If you are just getting started go for a walk and work your way up into a run. You will notice a difference in think and focus within the first few days.

3.Go to bed earlier and get up earlier.

We all have done it. You stay up till 2 or 3 in the moring on a weekend night and have slept till 10 or 11. You wake up but the day is half gone already and you feel tired and lethargic, right?

You feel like laying around the house all day and can’t get motivated for anything.  You got eight hours of sleep right?

Now compare that feeling to when you get to bed at 10 that night and are up at 6 in the morning. It’s the same eight hurs of sleep but you are more alive and peppy.

Our bodies were designed for getting to bed early and getting up early. That’s what helps our brain run at its optimal performance.

4.Read a book.

Reading stimulates our thought process. It also uses a great deal of imagination. Imagination leads to creativity and creativity can lead to excellent problem solving skills. If you run across a word that you don’t know the meaning of take a look up the work in a dictionary and improve your vocabulary as well.

5. Take time to focus on yourself.

We have busy lives. Going to and from, playing, working etc. At the end of the day take a few minutes after life has settled down, and start journaling. It’s an interesting process that if you stay with it will enhance your life and train your brain to think.