INSIGHTS (on leadership/self-leadership)
I’ve written about productivity hacks many times before. For example, here. And here. And here. But few hacks are simpler, or more science-backed than the one I share now. And this one also improves the quality of sleep you get.
Before you go to sleep, take a notecard from your nightstand and write down your to-do list for the morning.
That’s it.
Here are the science-backed reasons this works so well, for both productivity and sleep.
1. It allows you to engage in cognitive offloading.
A sleep study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology monitored people as they fell asleep. Half of the study participants were asked to write down all they had accomplished that day. The other half were asked to write down their to-do list for the next day. The to-do list group fell asleep significantly faster.
Why?
The study showed that when your brain knows you have captured something important (by writing it on a note card), it can let go, or cognitively offload. It’s easier to fall asleep and you won’t forget that thing you wrote down. I do this all the time. It really works.
2. You trigger your best thinking.
The moment right before you drift off induces a state known as hypnagogia. It’s a period when the brain has been proven to be highly effective at ideating and connecting dots. Writing a thought down before you fall asleep readies and guides the brain to process that thought. You’ve probably experienced this. You jot down an issue you’re trying to solve, and when you wake up in the morning to think it over, the answer often becomes clear. Magic.
3. It’s single-tasked in nature.
When you grab a notecard and write down your thoughts, ideas, or to-do’s, it’s singularly focused. You’re not finger-tapping thoughts into your phone, where shiny lights and a zillion potential distractions await. It’s just you, a pen, a notecard, and what you need to capture.
IMPERFECTIONS (a mistake many make)
You can throw a stone in any direction and hit someone who is overconfident or thinks they’re smarter than they really are. But even more common are people who make the mistake of underestimating their intelligence.
Is that you?
Here are nine science-backed signs that you’re not giving yourself enough IQ credit.
1. You’re creative.
Dr. Katie Davis, a clinical neuropsychologist, told Business Insider that creativity is a definitive sign of intelligence because it requires thinking flexibly/outside the box and necessitates the ability to shift and change your patterns of thinking from one way to another.
I’ve worked with many ad agency creatives–they’re some of the smartest people I’ve ever met. Their ability to take an insight and translate it into a message that illuminated my brand’s benefits in a compelling, memorable way is a task that few merely “book smart” people could do. I often walked away after a brilliant ad campaign presentation thinking, “Their brain just works differently.” Creativity is its own brand of smart.
2. You’re messy.
Kathleen Vohs from the University of Minnesota says the messier you are, the smarter you are. A study Vohs published in Psychological Science featured two groups asked to devise creative uses for Ping-Pong balls. One group worked in a messy, cluttered environment while the other worked in a tidy setting. The messy group brainstormed substantially more creative and interesting ideas. So before berating yourself for your perpetually cluttered desk, give yourself a few IQ points instead.
3. You’re curious.
If you love to learn, the more you’ll learn and the smarter you’ll get. A study from Goldsmiths University of London found that “how people invest their time and effort in their intellect” (i.e., feeding their curiosity) plays a huge role in cognitive growth.
But it’s not just learning more that makes you smarter, it’s wanting to learn more, which is a trait common in intelligent people. A study in the Journal of Individual Differences showed a correlation between people who scored high on IQ tests as a child and adults that were more curious and open to new ideas. Research from Rutgers and Georgia Tech also showed that those with high curiosity are more tolerant of ambiguity, which requires a sophisticated thinking style.
4. You talk to yourself.
No, it’s not a sign you’re crazy–just the opposite. A study from psychologists Paloma Mari-Beffa and Alexander Kirkham of Bangor University showed that talking out loud to yourself improves self-control, an important form of intelligence. They gave study participants a set of tasks and accompanying written instructions, asking them to read the instructions silently or out loud. Measured concentration and performance from those who read out loud was far better.
Talking out loud nets control, which is why so many professional athletes talk to themselves out loud during games. Which brings us to the next sign.
5. You have high self-control.
Whether you exercise self-control by talking to yourself out loud or just by willing it, it’s an overlooked sign of intelligence. A 2009 psychology study from Yale University gave participants IQ tests and offered them reward money they could receive immediately or later (for a higher amount). Those choosing to wait also had higher IQ scores, indicating that resisting making impulsive decisions and carefully weighing options correlates with intelligence.
6. You’re good with being by yourself.
If you like your own company and aren’t constantly in need of being around others, that’s a sign of intelligence. A study published in the British Journal of Psychology showed a correlation between contentedness with being alone and intelligence. I use alone time to think, prioritize, and plan, which reinforces self-control (sign No. 5).
7. You’re funny.
A 2011 University of New Mexico psychology study found that professional comedians and people who wrote funnier cartoon captions scored higher on verbal intelligence. This adds up, as some of the smartest people I know have a razor-sharp wit and sense of humor.
8. You’re open-minded.
A 2008 Yale University psychology study showed highly intelligent people tend to stay open-minded to others’ points of view, not formulating their own until hearing multiple voices. This doesn’t mean they’re fickle, though, as the study also showed open-minded people are more likely to be confident about their opinion once formed and less likely to be manipulated.
9. You’re not convinced you’re particularly smart.
Psychologists discovered the Dunning-Kruger effect, which says that people who are less competent or bright consistently overestimate their mental abilities, while intelligent people are far more aware of their limitations. And knowing your limitations means you’re more likely to surround yourself with people to offset your limitations. It also makes you hungrier to learn more, which makes you smarter (sign No. 3). As Shakespeare said, “The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.”
IMPLEMENTATION (one research-backed strategy, tip, or tool)
Here’s a slide I’ve shared in many a keynote:
It’s my simple way of asking you to push back on your fear, to take smart risks, and to try new things. The more you do, the more you experience. The more you experience, the less that scares or worries you, so the more you’ll try. It’s a wonderful virtuous cycle.
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