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"There are hundreds and hundreds of ways to succeed and many, many different abilities that will help you get there."
- Howard Gardner
Motivation Monday - Richard's Insight
I first became aware of the concept of multiple intelligence types when I had an argument with a fellow student at university. A friend of mine, when asked about his family, mentioned that his sister was attending art college. The other chap in the conversation, whose name escapes me, asked...'is that because she isn't very bright?'.
I felt a deep and inner anger at such an ignorant comment and went into some kind of post-pubescent rant at the idiot with the narrow mind!
Needless to say, whilst intuitively I knew the idiot was wrong, I did not know why. That came later when I read Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences by Howard Gardner. In this book, Gardner explained that there were in fact 7 different forms of intelligence and that we each possess a balance of each (or in some cases an absence in some). Over time, the research has been expanded and the list of intelligence types has grown a little as follows: musical–rhythmic, visual–spatial, verbal–linguistic, logical–mathematical, bodily–kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. He later suggested that existential and moral intelligence may also be worthy of inclusion.
Are Mikhail Baryshnikov, David Beckham & Ashley Banjo intelligent - yes...kinesthetic (among others). Are Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein & Charles Schwab smart - yes...despite being dyslexic and finding reading challenging). How about Michelangelo (visual-spacial), Prince (musical-rhythmic), Oprah Winfrey (interpersonal), Charles Darwin (naturalistic), and Gandhi (existential & moral)? Yes, yes and yes!
We are all unique and with that uniqueness comes our very own brand of intelligence or 'street smarts'. The traditional academic system tends to focus on only a few of these forms of intelligence, so if you feel like you didn't fit into 'the system' don't worry you are among good company...Bill Gates & Steve Jobs, for example, were both university drop outs!
Here's the point in all this Motivation Monday post, though - we can use our own personal and unique intelligence to make a great life for ourselves. It may not fit the 'norm' or even be what our parents wanted it to be, but there is room for each and every one of us on 'the ladder of success'.
Be yourself...maybe you are smarter than you think you are!