How I Tell How Smart Someone Is

Is it possible to tell how intelligent someone is by the way they talk?

I don’t know. I find the bigger the words that someone uses, the more that person feels as if they’re an elitist. It’s almost as if they feel that they want to be better than me.

Also, I have no clue what in the world they’re talking about, because they’re using a lot of words that maybe only .5% of the population understands. Instead of thinking that they’re smart or intelligent, they make me feel stupid. Then I end up not liking them because they hurt my tiny little ego. Oh, and also because we’ll never have anything to talk about. 🙁

I find people who speak at a fifth grade level, yet know how to articulate their words very clearly to be quite smart and intelligent.

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Originally posted on Quora.

Leonard Kim is Managing Partner at InfluenceTree. At InfluenceTree, Leonard and his team teach you how to build your (personal or business) brand, get featured in publications and growth hack your social media following.