HOW GETTING SURROUNDED BY SMART PEOPLE EFFECTS YOUR SUCCESS?
The Book – HIVE MIND by Garrett Jones talks about how living in a society with individuals of higher IQ can correlate with many positive effects in an individual life. It’s not a secret – that IQ is one of the most reliable measures of one’s success, it also sets a parameter for other mental abilities; attention, reaction time, problem-solving, memory and so forth. We have seen in past that these abilities are the attributes of high achievers with higher incomes, better academic performance, higher social status, even better at the relationships.
Garrett, through his book, also discovers how IQ is important not just at the individual course but also at the national level, as a society. He describes the synergistic effect of surrounding yourself with people with higher IQ and called it as the ‘Hive Mind’ effect.
He clearly says it; “it’s better to be a less-skilled honeybee in a highly productive hive than a highly skilled honeybee in the less-productive hive”.
Your neighbors have a crucial importance on what you as an individual can accomplish – he says. Garrett also used IQ data from all around the world and showed us a strong connection between the IQ of a society and its economic growth. In his sense he states, a lower IQ and poverty can become a destructive cycle.
It’s surprising how for so many people – their groups and friends are often those people who generally have lesser societal success, lower income, and lower quality of life. Often, these factors make us relaxed and put us in a comfort zone. But, then it’s your choice – do you want to be successful or be in your comfort zone?
Why our success is dependent on our peer’s IQ?
Evidently, humans are conformist in nature. We often end up copying what our peers do and believe in. We tend to talk, act and live the way they do. This is called ‘Bandwagon Effect’, according to which if everyone else is doing something; you somehow realize that you should too. In the same sense, if we’re a species who inclined towards our peers and often copy their acts – isn’t it smart to surround yourself with smart people? Apparently, even if you’re not as smart as your peer group – it’s likely that you’d adapt to their smarter beliefs – for a simple reason because everybody else is doing.
Whether you notice it consciously or not, you’re likely to work harder if people around you are working hard, and you’re doomed to failure if they’re in a wrong path. There’s a strong case for the importance of the IQ and how it acts as a strong predictor at both the individual and group level.
It's true that IQ alone is not everything
According to ‘American Psychology Society’ – there is only 45-70% role of your IQ in your success, which still leaves a lot of room for the kind of education you get and the environmental factors. However, one thing is certain that IQ is a crucial factor for your everyday life success and by surrounding yourself with smarter people you’re more inclined towards a better life.
So, with this hive-mind effect in your consciousness -- ask yourself; what kind of people I associate with, and how do they influence me and then wisely choose your company and surrounding.