Many of you reading this post will be very smart, some average on the brain cell spectrum and a few at the lower end of the scale. If we use IQ as the measure of intelligence, then it can be very difficult to tell how smart someone is in a short space of time, unless you happen to be carrying an IQ test around with you.
There are situations where being the smartest person in the room has it’s advantages, and if that’s not necessary usually you, there is always the option of at least not making it completely obvious that it’s not you. That way people at least won’t see you as the dummy in the room.
Here are a few ways you can come across as smarter than you are, no matter how smart that is.
Look people in the eye
When you look someone in the eye while talking to them it shows confidence, not only that, research conducted by Loyola University showed that people who manage their eye contact are perceived as being more intelligent
Wear geek glasses
Did you ever hear the saying that you should treat geeks well because one day you will likely be working for them? One thing synonymous with geeks everywhere is wearing think lens glasses. If you want to look smarter, and more like a geek you should definitely include these glasses in your arsenal. If your really slipping here and don’t need glasses at all, like myself remember there is always a clear frame option.
Dress for your new intelligence
It’s important to have the full smart package if you really want to look intelligent. And this also includes clothing, it’s well known that people who show more skin are perceived as being less intelligent, where those who cover up and look dressed for their role look smarter. Research backing this was a study by Northwest University that found people performed better when they wore a lab coat instead of normal clothing, so dressing smart actually makes you smarter!
Keep things simple
Have you noticed smart people have a way of looking at things in a more simplistic way, where less intelligent people overcomplicate everything? One thing to do is keep it simple, don’t try to use over complicated words or terminology when explain simple ideas, this makes you look like your trying to hard, and there is also more chance of you to saying something inaccurate, making you look like the dummy in the room.
Be Expressive
Research has found that if two people say the exact same thing, the person who uses more expression will be perceived as being smarter. This includes body language, tone of voice and volume. So next time your talking to people try and be more expressive to come across smarter.
I hope this helps you come across smarter, even if it’s for a job interview, a promotion at work or you want to impress your next partner. Best of luck, and let us know if this helped!
