I want to be more "worldly"...please read!?

Question

Sometimes i feel like the way i think is like the way the ditzy blonde girls on tv talk. like i don't analyze everything enough. every minute of my life i am spending thinking about the way i don't think enough! i don't know how i can start becoming more mature and intellectual. don't get me wrong, i do very well in school (not trying to brag or anything, it's to show i'm not IQ stupid, more so lacking the ability to understand of the world) so how can i becoming like one of YOU (meaning all your philosophy geniuses who get so many things that are written "between the lines"? i do so well with logic and math, but not so much when it comes to interpreting emotions and causes for a person's decision. how can i change this?

btw, i'm 15. and a lot of my classmates already seem to have this ability. i want to be like one of them, how can i improve my "people smarts"? will i grow up ignorant like this?? thanks so much guys, i appreciate any answers. :]

Answer 1

The very fact that you're concerned that you don't understand things implies, to me anyway, that you understand more than most of the people around you. It's generally the idiots who are positive that they know everything. Your classmates probably aren't as smart as you think they are.

If you want to understand something, make an effort to understand it. Don't understand the situation in Iraq? A lot of books have been written about it. Next time you're in a bookstore, pick one up and skim through it. If it holds your interest, read it all the way through.

Push yourself a little, but don't read something just because you think you "should" read it. Follow your interests. If you force yourself to read stuff you hate, learning will begin to seem like torture to you. If you only read what you're comfortable with, you'll turn into one of those people who reads romance novels and watches professional wrestling.

Novels are a great way to engage the mind. A well-written novel can teach you all sorts of things without anything resembling formal instruction. John Steinbeck has written many, many books like this, and most of them are quite readable. Check him out next time you're in the library or in the bookstore.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Hey dear,

1) Always remember that you do not have to try and catch up with your friends, in fact, sometimes when you don't realize it.. others might just be inspired by you. What I mean about this is, don't underestimate your abilities in life. You don't need to become just like everyone else, you need to become the best YOU, that you can be.

2) As you said you are book smart enough, in order to become people smart the first thing you will need to do is start, in your mind, analyzing the people you think you know best. What ticks them off, what makes them who they are? Start being critical of little things around you. For instance, you might want to analyze the sidewalk on your way home (it sounds weird but it works).

3) Trust me, you dont want to be like this 24/7. Give your mind some rest. I'm sure you dont act like a "ditsy blonde", you probably just dont trivialize every single thing. Which is good... you have a long life ahead of you.. and trust me once you hit college you will have a lot of time to think.

4) Enjoy life as much as you can. Go sit by the beach or somewhere pretty full of nature, and just think about it's beauty etc... Not only will you be relaxed, but it's a very lovely experience... a time to reminicse on everything.

5) Healthy foods and good nutritious, excersize and vitamins always help feul the mind.

I hope that helped hun. Feel free to email me

Answer 3

Just the fact that your fifteen and already wanting to think like an adult says alot.
I find that when Im alone is when I start to analyze things around me. Look at a stranger and try to think about what type of person they are just by how they look or interact with others. Watch people do everyday things and see a pattern in them. Look at different cultures and types of people and see how they are different yet the same. Analyze everything, look at the world around you with eyes wide open, take in every detail and compare them constantly.
You dont think like a ditzy blonde, just from the question you asked I can tell that you are blooming into an intelligent young lady. All in good time your eyes will open more and your mind will mature. You cant rush it honey, your mind grows as does your body.
.......Good luck.

Answer 4

I suggest you read:

1. The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant
2. Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder
3. Read related topics.

This will help you in a way. Don't be in a hurry your still young. You cannot fast track things especially you will be dealing with the world of wisdom. As you grow old each moment in your life will serve as an experience in the accumulation of thoughts which you will use in analyzing the world you live in.

I believe you are smart. And even smart enough to throw this question to the whole world with philosophical thoughts. Good job at your age.

Answer 5

The issue you face is logic. Humans, despite our claims, are quite illogical and some are ruled by emotions. Emotions are not rational or logical. Whenever someone expects the world and others to operate in a logical fashion they will face situations like you have mentioned.

Logic and math do not allow for inferences. They are precise -- inference is not. Understanding others often requires different areas of thinking such as inductive reasoning, deductive reasoning and inferences.

Understanding people requires social skills and the more intellectual one is the less likely they exercise these skills -- or even care.

Answer 6

i suggest reading about people from different cultures, different life styles, and learning to listen to people, then imagining how they feel, what they think about certain things, if you dont know what they might think, then get to know them better, its difficult to interpret emotions, as each person shows them differently, the worst thing you could do is think you understand all about people, that you know everything, as long as you are willing to learn, and to observe, you will be fine, just give it time, you are very young, we continue to grow and learn for all our lifetime, and just when we think we really learned something, we find out there is more, or maybe we were wrong, so keeping and open mind and questioning , to me, is the best approach

Answer 7

Time and experience will change your perspective.
For now, understand that it is better to listen. People your age who are going on and on about "philosophy" will be soooo embarrassed later on when they recall the things they said, or the things they wrote in their journals.
Listen, read, and take notes in the margins.
Your time to speak will come.

Answer 8

Most worldly experience comes through trial and error and observation. You cannot learn it in books (I don't know why, but this has been true for me). Lesson one is that whatever you think, you are not wrong. You are just at a certain stage in life.

Answer 9

don't watch MTV.
or any television for that matter. it stunts progressive thought process, esp in young people.
and 15 is young. sounds like you're on the right track though, wanting it is the first step.
also make a habit of reading non-fiction.

Answer 10

I think you are being too hard on yourself. The fact that you are even trying to understand the world at fifteen proves you are not really ignorant.