Ashley Roane

October 6, 2005

Successful Intelligence

As everyone knows, in order to successful one must be intelligent. What is not common knowledge, however, is that successful intelligence involves more than one aspect. According to Robert J. Sternberg, successful intelligence involves analytical, practical, and creative intelligences, in order to actually be successful. He claims “Successful intelligence is most effective when it balances all three of its analytical, creative, and practical aspects”(Sternberg 128). Throughout the past few weeks, I have learned ways in which I can utilize these three types of intelligence to be successful in all aspects of my life.

Analytical intelligence involves book smarts. Sternberg defines it saying it “involves conscious direction of our mental processes to find a thoughtful solution to a problem” (Sternberg 155). It is the type of intelligence most often measured by schools and used to decide whether a student is gifted or not. The story that Sternberg uses to illustrate analytical intelligence is of a student by the name of Alice. At the beginning of Alice’s schooling she was considered very bright and scored well on all sorts of standardized tests and things of that nature. However, once reaching higher levels of education, Alice became a more average student (Sternberg 128). The reason Sternberg gives for Alice’s difficulty in graduate school is a simple one. She is good at reciting information given to her and analyzing outside information, but she cannot come up with her own ideas, a necessity in the real world (Sternberg 129). This example shows that a person cannot successfully function in the world without more than one type of intelligence. People like Alice make wonderful students, but not wonderful additions to the work world.

For me, learning more about analytical intelligence has taught me a lot about myself. I am quite a bit like Alice in many ways. I am not saying that I am incapable of coming up with my own ideas or that I only function using one form of intelligence, I am simply stating that I tend to use my analytical intelligence to get by in the world. As far as I am concerned, I am quite capable of memorizing the information for a test and then promptly forgetting it or to analyze a story, but be less than adequate at writing a new one. In my years in school, I have often been considered gifted, often solely on the basis of my analytical abilities and my high test scores, something which I know is not the most adequate way to decide who is intelligent and who is not.

The second form of intelligence is creative intelligence. Creative intelligence involves the ability to come up with new and unique ideas to help solve problems or just for aesthetic purposes. According to Sternberg, “Creatively smart people are like good investors. They buy low and sell high. But whereas investors typically do so in the world of financial instruments, creative people deal in the world of ideas” (Sternberg 189). Sternberg uses a student by the name of Barbara to illustrate creative intelligence. Barbara applied to graduate school at Yale where Sternberg worked and was an average student as far as test grades are concerned, but had an excellent portfolio of creative work. According to Sternberg, although he thought her portfolio was good enough to grant admission, the rest of the Yale admissions staff did not and Barbara was ultimately turned down (Sternberg 137-138). Sternberg uses this story to show that many only see analytical intelligence as a measure of intelligence and ignore other important aspects such as creative intelligence (Sternberg 138).

If I were to define creative intelligence on my own, it would most likely focus on the artistic world. That is before reading Sternberg. Because of this rather simplistic view of the creative sphere, I would have automatically said I have little or no creative intelligence. I am not an artist and could not draw a decent picture to save my life. However, I now understand that creativity can take many forms such as writing a fictional story or simply playing a musical instrument. While I am by no means strongest in the area of creative intelligence, I now realize that I can think creatively. I still tend to think in a more analytical way, I am capable of being creative. This can be seen in the fact that I can play a musical instrument and also in the “sermons” I have given at my church for youth Sundays.

The final aspect of successful intelligence is practical intelligence. Practical intelligence includes the ability to get on in the world or as Sternberg at times calls it social intelligence (Sternberg 221). To use a typical cliché, being a people person is important to being successful. One example that Sternberg gives of someone with practical intelligence is Celia. Celia was average in everything academic but she excelled in the real world. According to Sternberg, “Celia could go into an environment, figure out what she needed to do to thrive there, and then do it” (Sternberg 141-142). Celia provides an excellent example of the third aspect because even if a person can answer every question in the book or compose a perfect sonata, that person cannot get a job without having that social intelligence. A sullen smart person will get no farther in the world than an average one. With the proper personality, one can show good practical intelligence. Also, involved with practical intelligence is common sense. Common sense dictates to a person what the best thing to do in a situation is and what to do or not to do. For instance, on the most basic level, common sense tells a person not to touch something extraordinarily hot because he will get burned. This works on all levels of common sense. A person has to have common sense to tell him not to say something that will get him fired and to say something that will get him hired.

In my opinion, practical intelligence is probably the most important. Being able to interact with other people takes precedence over being able to successfully complete the SATs or a science project. I believe that my practical intelligence is sufficient. I may do unintelligent things from time to time but for the most part I am level headed and practical. Unlike some that I know, I often feel that I have a great deal of common sense when I hear the things that they have said or done. I like to believe that I am good at thinking before I act or speak because I have to agree with the March Hare from Alice in Wonderland on the fact that “If you don’t think, you shouldn’t talk” (Alice in Wonderland, Disney, 1951). I must admit that if I were going to hire someone, I would choose the person with common sense who can work well with the customers over the person who can spout off useless facts a mile a minute. I feel that the ability to relate to one’s fellow man is more vital to surviving this world than being able to memorize a book.

In all successful intelligence consists of three parts, analytical, creative, and practical intelligence. It is important to have this sort of intelligence to well in the world of work and just in general for life. However, as Sternberg points out it is not just important to know the names of these three parts; it is important to know how to use them. Sternberg writes “Successfully intelligent people don’t just have abilities, they reflect on when and how to use them abilities effectively” (Sternberg 128). Sternberg in his book provides concrete examples of how one can use these “abilities effectively” and gives a guide to being a successfully intelligent person.

In conclusion, successfully intelligent people combine and balance all three aspects listed above analytical, creative, and practical intelligence. In order to be successful in any event that one undertakes; one must be capable of working and effectively using these parts of the mind and abilities. Sternberg’s guide provides a base upon which to build one’s abilities to go to a higher and more successful level of achievement and intelligence.

Bibliography

Sternberg, Robert J. Successful Intelligence: How Practical and Creative Intelligence Determine Success and Life. New York: Plume, 1997.

Disney, Walt. Alice in Wonderland. Movie, 1951.