7 Simple Habits That Will Make You Smarter - YouTube

hey everyone and welcome to top think today we're  going to learn about seven simple habits that'll  

make you smarter now let's begin number one doing  nothing do you set aside time to do nothing you  

may have a long list of responsibilities on your  plate you spend hours every day working running  

errands keeping up with your hobbies you want to  develop productive habits to increase your work  

ethic and use your time wisely you do all these  things to improve yourself but what if i told you  

one of the best ways to increase your intelligence  is to do nothing at all when you're running around  

all day every day you rarely get a minute  to yourself when you're finally alone you're  

so exhausted that you feel like turning off your  brain so you watch tv you play games and you enjoy  

popular time wasters because you want to give your  brain a break from the chaos of your daily life  

but you don't have to waste your time to relax  your brain you can unwind after a long day while  

simultaneously boosting your brain power all  you have to do is sit down tune out the world  

and think you might think about your goals you  might think about your loved ones you might think  

about the happiest parts of your day or maybe the  most frustrating there are no requirements and no  

expectations there are no lists schedules or time  limits you can think about everything or you can  

think about nothing the only requirement is that  you think all by yourself now during the time you  

spend thinking you may discover a strange kind of  clarity when you're busy your thoughts are muddled  

and scattered you're thinking every which way and  you can hardly make sense of your own thoughts  

all you know is that you're stressed and confused  but when you stop to think in a quiet place  

you can unravel and digest your most overwhelming  problems that's where this simple habit comes in  

handy it doesn't boost your iq or reveal the  mysteries of the universe but it does teach  

you how to think and solve problems on your  own that kind of intelligence is invaluable  

number two arguing against yourself you can argue  in favor of ideas and values that you believe in  

but how often do you argue against your own  opinions here's a challenging intellectual  

exercise that works your brain in unique ways  so the next time you argue a point change sides  

yeah change sides argue the opposite of what you  believe this is called playing devil's advocate  

and it's an incredible exercise to strengthen  your intellect and your personal opinions  

why well because arguing against yourself  helps you recognize the holes in your opinions  

it challenges you to think harder about your  ideas ah but most of all it helps you understand  

both sides of a controversial subject so when you  play devil's advocate you're forced to recognize  

the possibility of something else an opinion  that isn't your own many people are so focused  

on being right that they don't think through the  stances they take they blindly believe that their  

way is the only way but that's rarely the case the  most intelligent people know that every argument  

is more complicated than simple rights and wrongs  every difficult question demands a broad spectrum  

of answers but it takes an open mind and a strong  intellect to understand multiple perspectives so  

challenge your opinions get to know all sides  of an argument and recognize the holes in your  

thinking your opinions may change or stay exactly  the same either way by expanding your perspective  

you've gained a deeper understanding of a  complicated issue number three reading every day  

reading finds its way into many of our videos it's  one of the most versatile and constructive habits  

out there it can be fun relaxing educational  and challenging reading can open new doors help  

you navigate difficult situations and ignite  passions that you never knew existed above all  

daily reading gives a significant boost  to your intelligence for starters reading  

activates your imagination your imagination is  your ability to create new ideas and concepts  

there's a gross misconception that artists are the  only people with strong imaginations that couldn't  

be further from the truth almost every significant  person in history had a powerful imagination  

from writers to scientists these imaginative  people were resourceful clever and perceptive  

their imaginations empowered their brain with a  flexible array of mental tools and it can do the  

same thing for you so if you're looking to boost  your intelligence then your imagination's a great  

place to start whether you want to be witty or  wise adaptable or perceptive every intellectual  

benefits from a fine-tuned imagination and the  best way to develop your imagination is reading  

every day number four available resources in the  world today there are limitless options for anyone  

hoping to expand their brain all you have to do  is look countless podcasts videos and seminars  

exist online to educate you on a wide variety of  subjects you can learn about the arts investigate  

the sciences or engage with hobbies that you've  never even heard of the problem is these resources  

aren't always standing in plain sight most  people won't go out of their way to search  

for a new podcast or seminar and even if you do  you might listen once and then never tune in again  

if you don't engage with online resources then  you're not going to learn much of anything  

learning relies on repetition you absorb  information on a given subject time and time again  

sometimes you hear things you've heard before  other times you hear clashing opinions and  

disjointed arguments but all of that information  comes together to form your mastery of the subject  

so if you want to learn something new or grow your  intelligence then find a resource that works for  

you pick a subject and explore the podcasts or  youtube channel with interesting things to say  

when you found someone you like incorporate that  educational resource into your daily routine and  

if you're consistent you can grow your knowledge  in no time number five empowering conversations  

reading and studying are effective ways to  boost your intelligence but you can reap  

the same rewards from one great conversation all  right let's say you and your friend have a long  

discussion about a difficult topic you explain  your thoughts you dissect your arguments you ask  

good questions and by the end of your conversation  you've developed a fuller understanding of what  

you're talking about you may not be leading  experts in the field you might not be reinventing  

your craft but by challenging your brain you've  nurtured your intelligence in a unique way  

great conversations put your creativity and  imagination to the test when you actively explore  

topics out loud you're challenging yourself to  use your knowledge you get a clearer idea of  

what you know and what you don't if you've found  yourself a capable sparring partner the two of you  

can push each other to new intellectual heights  so find someone whose intelligence you admire  

and start up an interesting conversation talk  about something that lights a fire inside you  

because a great conversation can change the way  you think number six daily brainstorming do you  

spend time brainstorming brainstorming plays a  role in many professional fields but it's also  

a valuable practice to increase your intelligence  just try this for 15 minutes sit down at your desk  

open a notebook grab a pencil and pick a  topic that you want to brainstorm about  

are you interested in rewriting your goals do you  want to move your career in a new direction maybe  

you're an artist hoping to generate ideas for your  next work whatever topic you choose write down 10  

ideas the first 10 that pop into your head they  don't have to be life-changing ideas you might  

not like everything you write down but that's  okay every once in a while you might stumble upon  

a kernel of wisdom but your brain benefits from  generating new ideas whether they're useful or not  

this daily habit teaches you to think outside the  box you hone your ability to innovate adapt and  

create on the fly like a strong imagination this  is one of the most important tools an intelligent  

person can have it's useful in any line of work  and it only takes 15 minutes a day so brainstorm  

first thing in the morning pour yourself a cup of  coffee find a quiet corner to think and write down  

10 new ideas not only are you warming up your  brain for a productive day but you're also  

boosting your creative power number seven  intellectual influence intelligent people  

surround themselves with intellectual equals they  want stimulating and challenging conversations  

so they choose friends partners and professional  connections that force them to expand their minds  

not every single one of your friends needs to  be a brainiac with some friends it's easier to  

turn your brain off and relax knowing they don't  have any expectations of you however if you want  

to grow your intelligence then you can't spend  all your time with people who aren't interested  

in difficult subjects expand your social circle to  include people at or above your intellectual level  

ideally you should look for people who've achieved  the kind of success that you're looking for  

because these are the people you can learn from  but why is it so important to make intellectual  

friends well you gain a kind of second hand  intelligence by spending time with someone  

who's highly intellectual intelligent people  use more challenging vocabulary they engage  

in harder conversations and they ask better  questions they even make more sophisticated jokes  

so when you spend time with intellectual friends  their natural intellectual rubs off on you and  

that raises your intellectual standards so  find a new group of intellectual friends  

no you don't need to get rid of your old  ones but you do need people in your life  

that challenge you that argue with you  and encourage you to improve hey thanks  

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