Who do you want to be when you grow up?
“I want to be a genius.” the child replied.
A genius huh? Did you know that history has placed that moniker “genius”, on some wildly successful and possibly crazy people?
“Yeah, I want to be like that.”
Successful or crazy?
“Remembered in history.”
The 24 Qualities that Geniuses Have in Common
The world’s greatest geniuses have all had 24 personality characteristics in common and you can develop the same traits yourself, says an expert.
“Most people have the mistaken idea that geniuses are born, not made”, declared clinical psychologist Dr. Alfred Barrious, founder and director of the Self-Programmed Control Center of Los Angeles and author of the book, Towards Greater Freedom and Happiness.
“But if you look at the lives of the worlds greatest geniuses like Edison, Socrates, DaVinci, Shakespeare, Einstein, you will discover they all had 24 personality characteristics in common.
“These are traits that anyone can develop. It makes no difference how old you are, how much education you have, or what you have accomplished to date. Adopting these personality characteristics enables you to operate on a genius level.”
Here are the Characteristics Dr. Barrios lists, which enable geniuses to come up with and develop new and fruitful ideas:
1. DRIVE. Geniuses have a strong desire to work hard and long. They’re willing to give all they’ve got to a project. Develop your drive by focusing on your future success, and keep going.
2. COURAGE. It takes courage to do things others consider impossible. Stop worrying about what people will think if you’re different.
3. DEVOTION TO GOALS. Geniuses know what they want and go after it. Get control of your life and schedule. Have something specific to accomplish each day.
4. KNOWLEDGE. Geniuses continually accumulate information. Never go to sleep at night without having learned at least one new thing each day. Read. And question people who know.
5. HONESTY. Geniuses are frank, forthright and honest. Take the responsibility for thins that go wrong. Be willing to admit, ‘I goofed’ and learned from my mistakes.
6. OPTIMISM. Geniuses never doubt they will succeed. Deliberately focus your mind on something good coming up.
7. ABILITY TO JUDGE. Try to understand the facts of a situation before you judge. Evaluate things on an opened minded, unprejudiced basis and be willing to change your mind.
8. ENTHUSIASM. Geniuses are so excited about what they are doing, it encourages others to cooperate with them. Really believe that things will out well. Don’t hold back.
9. WILLINGNESS TO TAKE CHANCES. Overcome your fear of failure. You won’t be afraid to take chances once you realize you can learn from your mistakes.
10. DYNAMIC ENERGY. Don’t sit on your butt waiting for something good to happen. Be determined to make it happen.
11. ENTERPRISE. Geniuses are opportunity seekers. Be willing to take on jobs others won’t touch. Never be afraid to try the unknown.
12. PERSUASION. Geniuses know how to motivate people to help them get ahead. You’ll find it easy to be persuasive if you believe in what you’re doing.
13. OUTGOINGNESS. I’ve found geniuses able to make friends
easily and be easy on their friends. Be a ‘booster’ not somebody who
puts others down. That attitude will win you many valuable friends.
14. ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE. Geniuses are generally able to get their ideas across to others. Take every opportunity to explain your ideas to others.
15. PATIENCE. Be patient with others most of the time, but always be impatient with your self. Expect far more of yourself than others.
16. PERCEPTION. Geniuses have their mental radar working full time. Think more of others’ needs and wants than you do your own.
17. PERFECTIONISM.
Geniuses cannot tolerate mediocrity, particularly in themselves. Never
be easily satisfied with your self. Always strive to do better.
18. SENSE OF HUMOR. Be willing to laugh at your own expense. Don’t take offense when the joke is on you.
19. VERSATILITY. The more things you learn to accomplish, the more confidence you will develop. Don’t shy away from new endeavors.
20. ADAPTABILITY.
Being flexible enables you to adapt to changing circumstances readily.
Resist doing things the same old way. Be willing to consider new
options.
21. CURIOSITY. An inquisitive, curious mind will
help you seek out new information. Don’t be afraid to admit you don’t
know it all. Always ask questions about things you don’t understand.
22. INDIVIDUALISM. Do things the way you think they should be done, without fearing somebody’s disapproval.
23. IDEALISM.
Keep your feet on the ground — but have your head in the clouds. Strive
to achieve great things, not just for yourself but for the better of
mankind.
24. IMAGINATION. Geniuses know how to think in
new combinations, see things from a different perspective, than anyone
else. Unclutter your mental environment to develop this type of
imagination. Give yourself time each day to daydream, to fantasize, to
drift into a dreamy inner life the way you did as a child.
I wrote the first part, the second part and majority of the post is from an article I pulled from here
And by the way...Scribd is the website I found this on and it is a great tool for finding info.
thanks for the comments...and upon further consideration I agree it's more along the lines of emotional Q than intelligence Q.
i found it incredibly inspiring along side an article I read in the latest Fast Company about JDK, a design firm that has a very inspirational leader. check it out, called "Less Hulk, More Bruce Lee"
Posted by: a.brain | 03/27/2007 at 11:43 AM
This is more in line with emotional intelligence 100%. Great list but almost a catch all - I agree this should be ME!
Posted by: Siggy | 03/27/2007 at 01:30 AM
Who wouldn't want to be this type of person? I'm not sure this doesn't have more to do with emotional intelligence than it does IQ. Very inspiring list though, thanks for sharing it.
Posted by: tom delong | 03/26/2007 at 09:59 PM
#13 seems odd to me. Perhaps I've just heard too many stories about "geniuses" being reclusive, odd, socially-awkward, etc. I'm thinking, for instance, of the movie "Finding Forrester" and Sean Connery's character...or artists cutting off their ears, or killing themselves. I don't know, maybe they weren't geniuses.
I think I'd be inclined to say that "successful" people exhibit these qualities. Genius, I'd rather reserve for people of incredible intellect. But then again, I'm a genius, so I don't want to share the title with too many people...
Posted by: cancer | 03/26/2007 at 02:03 PM