Increase intelligence: 11 ingenious tricks to achieve it

Increasing intelligence is always possible. While it is true that we are born with genetic determinations that incline us to be more or less intelligent, it is also true that the brain is an organ endowed with great plasticity. This means that it changes, that it is modified depending on experience, training and our openness to learning itself.

There is no consensus on the definition of intelligence. for some It is the ability to learn, to innovate, to give original answers to everyday problems (Charles Spearman, 1930). For others, it is the ability to apply knowledge (David Wechsler, 1960)

Maybe The most universal definition is the one that defines it as the ability to find new solutions to old problems. On the other hand, there are several models that understand that intelligence should be understood more as a set of intelligences – emotional intelligence, social intelligence, logical intelligence, etc. – than as a single one (Howard Gardner, 1990).

Intelligence, therefore, is not only applicable to professional activity. One way or another, Being smarter also helps us be happier because it makes us more capable of overcoming difficult situations. It is worth working to increase intelligence and we will immediately give you 11 tricks to achieve it.

Strategies to increase intelligence

Rather than aspiring to increase our IQ, what we should set our personal goals on is enhancing our cognitive flexibility, as well as achieving a more optimal growth mindset. These factors can help us improve our quality of life by responding better to adversity, seeing opportunities where others see walls and barbed wire.

Studies such as those carried out by psychologists Martin Buschkuehl and John Jonides, from Columbia University, tells us that indeed, we can all increase our intelligence. To do this, we must focus on fluid intelligence, that is, our ability to be more creative, solve problems in an original way and reason abstractly. Let’s see how to achieve it.

1. Meditation serves to increase intelligence

The meditation It increases intelligence in the sense that it makes us more awake, better observers of what is happening outside and inside us. This is not a simple assessment, but a conclusion supported by studies. In several experiments, monitored through magnetic resonance imaging, it has been shown that the brain works better after doing a meditation session.

There is no worse enemy of brain function than stress . Under this state, cortisol is released, a hormone that impairs concentration and memory. Meditation reduces stress. You don’t have to become a monk, just take advantage of every moment of waiting, like when you’re standing in line or waiting for the bus to arrive, to do breathing and relaxation exercises.

2. Expose yourself to new experiences

Everything new is a stimulus that induces increased intelligence. Novelty creates unprecedented connections in your brain. This is because you have to go through a thought process to absorb new information, understand it, and incorporate it into what you already know.

A trip, going out to a place you don’t know, reading a new book or any experience that is not frequent is great food for your intelligence. Staying in your comfort zone only makes your mind progressively lazier..

3. Do regular physical and mental exercise

Physical exercise oxygenates the brain and improves its functioning. It is also a way to reduce stress and practice mental hygiene. The mind and body are always united. A healthy body is the essential condition for having a healthy mind that is able to increase its capacity.

It is also important to do mental exercises regularly. Try to stimulate your memory by trying to remember phone numbers or specific information. It is also good that you do simple math operations manually. Playing chess, doing crossword puzzles and similar activities are very positive for increasing intelligence.

4. Learn a new language or play an instrument

Learning a new language is always a great challenge. It is not easy, especially when it is a language very distant from the mother tongue. But precisely This difficulty makes it an excellent way to increase intelligence.

When you learn a new language you exercise many intellectual functions at the same time. The same thing happens when you learn to play a musical instrument. In both cases Functions such as attention, memory, coordination, analogies, etc. come into play.. Studies such as the one carried out at the University of Toronto by Dr. Bernard Ross demonstrate this relationship.

5. Look for the difficult path

When we choose the easy way out, we may save time, but we also contribute to the atrophy of some capabilities. of the brain. In general, we want everything to have a “step by step”, that it is not necessary to think, but rather that others do the thinking for us.

Perhaps this is valid in various circumstances, but it is also positive that sometimes we choose the difficult path. Not looking for instructions, but deducing the path to reach a result. That makes you more creative and intelligent. Additionally, it increases your self-confidence.

6. Connect with all kinds of people

Just as it is important to expose yourself to new situations, it is also important to come into contact with different types of people. Each relationship challenges you to see, capture and understand the other’s point of view. and this ends up increasing intelligence.

It is worth having friends of different ages, backgrounds, beliefs, etc. If you only associate with people who look like you, you significantly limit your field of experience. With this you also impose limits on brain exercise.

7. Get enough and adequate rest

It is never enough to insist on something that is increasingly evident: Rest It is as much or more crucial than work. Elite athletes, for example, have learned this lesson very well, since they work with very high fatigue points.

The brain, yes or yes, needs breaks so that it can function properly. If there is no rest, the consequence is a dull brain, which functions in half gear and diminishes its ability.

Rest includes three aspects: active breaks during work, sleep time and leisure time.. All these dimensions are of great importance. Active breaks are a daily protective measure to avoid dullness.

Sleep is definitive so that the brain can process the information it has absorbed. And leisure time is absolutely necessary to maintain good brain function in the long term.

8. Maintain a critical thinking style

Blind acceptance of the facts around us leads to conformism and a lazy thinking style. Although falling to the extreme of systematic opposition is not helpful either, do not be afraid to question those aspects of your life that do not seem coherent, fair or honest to you, as this will sharpen your intelligence.

9. Practice introspection

You are a person as complex as the world around you. Connecting your interior with the way the world works is only achieved with prior introspection work, in which you explore your own mind and your way of acting. Therefore, never hesitate to spend time analyzing yourself.

10. Train your empathy

Empathy not only brings you closer to a more compassionate and just lifestyle, but it greatly develops your understanding of the human mind (and non-human, if you include other animals). Understanding the thoughts and emotions of others will help you find more creative, fair and elaborate solutions and, therefore, develop your intelligence.

11. Read

The last tip has to do, practically, with all the previous ones: read. Read all genres, all formats, all styles. A regular reading habit is directly related to a more developed general intelligence. Consequently, never hesitate to carry a book under your arm wherever you go.

What it is fundamentally about is building a lifestyle that allows you to be more awake and attentive to the reality that surrounds you.. That also includes regular measures to take care of the proper functioning of your brain. This, without a doubt, will be reflected in your well-being and your intelligence, so do not hesitate to put them into practice.

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