Self-Improvement: "How to Impress Someone With Your Intelligence"

How to Impress Someone With Your Intelligence

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

You want people to think you are smart! The easiest way to do this is to specialize.

Steps

1. Choose a small area in which to become an expert.
   
2. Read books and magazines about this topic.
   
3. Find other people who like this area too, and spend time with these people. The conversation will inevitably lead to your favorite topic, and you will therefore learn even more about it.
   
4. When you are with the person you are trying to impress, steer the conversation over to your area of expertise every once in awhile. The more you know, the more impressive you are going to be.
   
5. Study History. Studying history will give massive amounts of general knowledge to draw on in almost any conversation.

Tips

• Be sure to learn all the vocabulary and buzzwords associated with your topic. If you like cars, know what a V-8 engine is, for example.
  
• A good way to find others interested in your topic is to join a club. If birdwatching is your thing, start going on those Saturday morning hikes you have read about in the paper.
  
• You don't have to know a lot about everything to show that you are in fact quite intelligent. You just have to know a lot about any one small area. Not too many people can tell the difference between a Gypsy Moth and a tent caterpillar, but if you can, people are going to notice!
  
• When you try to impress someone with your intelligence, be sure to find a person who will respond well to your area of expertise.

Warnings

• Sometimes people are put-off or feel belittled when talking to someone who is trying to impress them with smarts. Be modest with how much you throw at the person all at once.
  
• Try not to make your knowledge too obscure or uninteresting to others. Don't specialize in something like the manufacture of ballpoint pens.
  
• If you try to impress someone, who doesn't play computer games, with your Marvel vs. Capcom 2 knowledge, you'll come off looking like a geek. Pick your targets with care.
  
• Try not to look like a know-it-all because no one likes them.

Related wikiHows

• How to Ask a Question Intelligently
  
• How to Become More Intelligent Than You Are Now
  
• How to Be Smart
  
• How to Challenge Your Mind to Become Smarter and Wiser
  
• How to Be Good at Geography

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