How to Get Smart and Stay Smart
Getting smart and staying smart has more to do with using the muscle located between your ears than being born with a genius IQ. Anyone can increase his or her intelligence by participating in activities that will stimulate the person's mind and increase the individual's knowledge base. Exercising, meditating and reading are a few of the key components of increasing your intelligence.
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Instructions
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Read books on topics you're interested in learning about or topics that you haven't been exposed to previously. This serves a dual purpose. The first is that you'll increase the knowledge you have about a particular topic and the second is that you'll expand the size of your vocabulary. Reading in volume has been linked directly to the size of a person's vocabulary, according to California State University Northridge.
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Keep up-to-date in current events by reading the newspaper every day. Reading the newspaper will help you gain a broader understanding of what's going on in the world. Understanding current events may challenge your mind to think analytically about major issues and will help you understand different points of view that exist on major issues. Consider reading the editorial section and developing your own opinions on the issues authors are writing about.
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Sign up for continuing education classes at your local college or university. The key to getting smart and staying smart is to be a lifelong learner. You should never stop trying to learn new things or becoming better at what you do. If you don't have the money to pay for college classes, consider watching free lectures through MIT's Open Courseware free online lectures.
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Participate in activities that will stimulate your mind and challenge you to think analytically or creatively. A few examples of mentally stimulating activities include chess, music, and puzzles such as Sudoku and crossword puzzles.
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Exercise aerobically for at least 30 minutes on a daily basis. Scientists have discovered that aerobic exercise results in the development of new brain cells, according to Live Science. Exercising also helps decrease stress, which will provide you with a clear mind to think intelligently on a daily basis.
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Meditate on a daily basis. Research shows that meditation has a positive and direct affect on brain structure, focus and attention span and improves memory, according to "Time" magazine. In addition, meditation is an excellent stress reliever.
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Tips & Warnings
Make it a daily goal to try to learn something new every day. You don't necessarily need to read an entire book. Learning a small trivia fact each day is better than learning nothing at all. However, you should consider reading a book for a few minutes before you go to bed every night if possible.
You should always try to read a book instead of watching television if you want to get smart and stay smart. Reading results in much more stimulation and learning than watching television does. If you do watch television, try watching something educational on a channel such as the Discovery or History Channel.
References
- New York Times: What Do IQ Tests Measure? Not Intelligence
- California State University Northridge: What Reading Does for the Mind
- Life Hack: 15 Steps to Cultivate Lifelong Learning
- Pick The Brain: 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Intelligence
- Live Science: Exercise Grows New Brain Cells
- Time Magazine: How to Get Smarter One Breath at a Time
Resources
- Photo Credit Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
