The Type of Thinking which Facilitates Wisdom

Let's address an important but rarely talked about topic today. Let's think and talk about Thinking.

Way too often, I find that many people are overly attracted to Intelligence. This is because an intelligent person is able to pick up the main points very quickly in a situation, in an argument or on a complicated topic, and can quickly come to grips with the subject matter being discussed. Highly intelligent people often seek out Intelligence in their direct reports because they are impatient with their Time and like to be quickly understood.

But, Intelligence is not Wisdom; and it would be a fallacy and a mistake to over-state and over-place the importance of Intelligence.

In this my first blog on the topic of Thinking, let's talk about the need to differentiate between Intelligence, Good Judgement, Eloquence, and Wisdom.

In my mind, Intelligence is at best one-third of Wisdom. This is how I see it: Intelligence + Good Judgement (most to all of the time, on most to all things that matter) + Eloquence = Wisdom. If and only if a person demonstrates consistently and sustainably all 3 aspects, most to all of the time, on most to all things that matter, is a person considered and deemed Wise.

Think about this for a moment: How many people do you know who are Intelligent? Of them, how many possess Good Judgement? Of them, how many Eloquent? Think next: How many people do you consider Wise? Those whom you considered Wise, do they possess a good mix of Intelligence, Good Judgement, and the gift of Eloquence?

Think about your role as a CEO, a boss, a business leader, I'm sure there are many times and situations when you feel that what you need most in your organization is Good Judgement but what your people are primarily providing is raw Intelligence, and you know deep in your heart that that simply is not good enough, but somehow have not found the words, or perhaps you have not had the chance to reflect deeply and figure out what's missing.

For organizations and teams to grow and achieve, we need to grow and build Wisdom. We need to look beyond raw Intelligence and hone and nurture Good Judgement, such that the right decisions are taken most to all of the time, on most to all things that matter.

Intelligence + Good Judgement + Eloquence = Wisdom is a "killer" combination in a leader. Especially if the good judgement is arrived at swiftly & decisively, turbo-boosting the speed aspect of Intelligence in its rapid grasp & understanding of things, and especially if the leader has the requisite eloquence and the gift of rhetoric to give full value and justification to the subject matter at hand --- clearly, concisely, masterfully, fluidly, fluently, persuasively, inspiringly, impactfully articulating his stand and delivering his message. In this way, the message behaves as if it's "carried by wings and takes flight", deep into the hearts, minds and souls of the people --- achieving its full & complete purpose, which is to inspire and create action with the organization, for the organization (or with the masses, for the masses if you are a leader in Politics) for a better outcome, a better future, a better life.