Ah, That is the Question.

   It is not such a good thing for adults to scold children for asking questions all the time.  Even questions that are asked with the purpose of annoying should be answered.  Not always with a direct answer, mind you.  Sometimes the best answer is an offer to help the child discover an answer.  But the power of questions should be acknowledged.  Questions are the mind getting out of the mire, or of too much comfort, or a loop.  They are a movement in a new direction.  Even 'awfullizing' questions such as the whine "Why does everybody always pick on me?" can actually point the way forward.  That question will point the way if it is listened to and answered by the questioner.  The key words being "everybody" and "always".  The astute questioner will see the flaw in the question and then ask a better question.
   Asking a good question is a skill which 'wearing the Smart Hat' will help you develop. You will also learn to recognize flawed questions.  Asking a flawed question that sounds good is a common propaganda tool. We talk about Hitler and Nazi Germany as a time of getting people to believe the Big Lie.  That kind of thing still goes on. But you can learn to see the lie in the question as you learn to use the tool of asking good questions.  Question often.  Notice feelings of discomfort, or worse.  Ask what message these feelings are sending.  Ask what change is needed.  Ask what ideas occur.  Ask what impact or problem these ideas raise.  Ask if these problems matter or can be overcome. Ask if you should act, delegate, delay or discard.  Asking questions is a powerful way to develop your intelligence.  So put on your Smart Hat and ask away.

I Am, I Will

  One of the most quoted sayings from the great philosophers is the one by Emmanuel Kant, "I think, therefore I am."  He didn't give himself any labels.  He just affirmed the bedrock fact of his existence.  As I have observed people over the years I have come to believe that a person can fail to make that basic "I am." decision.  A person can fail to know that the center of their life, their existence, is in themselves, and not dependent on the labels given by others.  Those labels can be powerful.  They can be empowering or toxic.  But they can be received selectively.  If you choose to think of yourself as smart you will find yourself acting in ways that will cause others to think of you as smart.  If you choose to think of yourself as kind you will do kind things without having to worry about it.  Leave certain labels behind and take up the ones that are good for you.  Make the "I am." decision and be comfortable with yourself. Instead of saying "I am a dummy" you will say, "This is something I don't know, but I have the power to find out what I need to know.  I am smart enough to conquer this, to ask questions, to experiment, to learn.  I will do this."  When you have made the "I ma." decision you do not fear mistakes or failure the way others do.  They are simply indications of what doesn't work and give you a chance to try something else.  So put on Your Smart Hat, make the I Am decision and take on the world.

Marshmallows and Pretzels and Other Good Things

  In the 1960s hundreds of four year olds were the subject of several studies about their ability to delay gratification.  The best known one became known as the Marshmallow experiment.  In that one the children were told they could have one marshmallow, but if they could keep from eating it for 15 minutes they could have two.  Some children did manage to hold out.  They found various ways to distract themselves, or control their desire.  Some turned around so they couldn't see the marshmallow.  Others covered their eyes.  Some pretended the marshmallow was something else, like a cloud or a fake marshmallow.  Some became busy kicking at the legs of the table where they were sitting.  The successful children continued to be successful in many other ways.  The results were written about in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of  the United States of America in 2011.  For example these "high delayers" averaged a score of 210 points higher on the SAT tests. These kids at four years old were already figuring out how to use the executive function, or prefrontal cortex, part of their brain to get them what they wanted.  At times it is important to be emotional.  At times it is important to use will power.  Your Smart Hat can help you decide which is which.  These studies continued for forty years and the collaborators were at different universities, like Duke and Cornell.  One of the things they found was that some children were not as able at first to wait and earn the second marshmallow, but were later able to develop more willpower.  Willpower is a big key to developing and expressing your brain power.  So put on Your Smart Hat and shine.

Smile in the Mirror

The Smart Hat helps you make choices about many things including your self image.  So far in your life you have been subjected to the reactions and opinions of others in forming your self image.  This has even been studied widely.  In fact, the American Sociologist Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929)
referred to this as ' the looking glass self '.  However, your Smart Hat can help you reject the mistakes of others. If others have given you a self-image of not so smart that is a mistaken image.  When you look in the mirror you can smile.  You can say, "I have discovered that I am smart in many ways."  Imagine looking in a mirror and smiling.  Then see yourself saying to yourself, "I am pretty smart.  I learned to smile didn't I?"  When people are smiling at each other there is no thought of labels or rankings.  There is just here and now communication.  Do that for yourself.  Smile in the mirror and be happy.  Then if there is something you need to learn it will be easier.  The happier you are the easier it is to learn.  So put on your Smart Hat and smile and laugh all the way to the top of your class.

Do You Know All That Much?

There is insistent pressure on everybody to be smart.  Everybody also has the fear that they are not all that smart.  But I urge you to stop and examine all this.  New things are difficult.  That's just the way it is.  But consider all that you have actually learned by the time you can read well enough to read this post.  You have mastered speaking, eating with utensils, being potty trained, reading, relating to others, and managing your emotions, among other things.  Oh, yes.  You can probably dress yourself and buy your own candy.  You broke each of those things down into their smallest parts and practiced those small bits over and over.  You built on skills to get further skills and here you are, a functioning adult.  Another skill you used as you learned all the things I mentioned was that you didn't dilly dally around about learning these things.  You went for them with gusto.  So capitalize on your skill of being fearless, use your other skills of practice and breaking things down and get a little bit smarter.  You have already done great things.  Walking is a great skill.  Complex and new when you start out.  As is talking.  Math and foreign languages, writing poetry or driving a car are not actually as hard.  You are marvelous.  You can learn.  You can ask questions or get things demonstrated for you.  Your  smart hat is tailor made for you, it is just your size.  Put it on and celebrate how smart you are.

If You Think You Are Smart, You Are

Who decides if you are smart or not?  It has to be you in the long run.  The basic way to check up on your "smarts" is to ask yourself how something worked out.  If you approve of what you want and you are getting what you want then everything is fine.  If you didn't succeed then be smart enough to learn from your efforts and modify your 'try'.  You are the judge.  Watch out for other people's judgments.  Opinions of others do affect how you fit in.  Sometimes that may matter.  But your own self image must be basic.  Intelligence is the ability to learn from your environment.  Sometimes that means changing your environment.  I've dropped out of a few toxic environments and am proud of myself for doing so.  This is my first post of "Your Smart Hat" and I hope you will come with me and have some fun exploring: How Your Are Smart, Ways To Show What Smart Is, How to Watch Out For Control Attempts and more.  Try on you Smart Hat and see how it fits.