Monday

Discovering your unique intelligence



In this article, I will be focusing on how to identify your unique skills and talents, or in other words, your unique intelligence. All of us are born with different intelligences. Some of these are inborn, while others are learnt and discovered along life’s journey. There are many different types of intelligence that we possess. You have to find your unique combination and from there, you would be able to know what your unique talents and skills are as well as your strengths and weaknesses.

1. Linguistic Intelligence involves sensitivity to spoken and written language, the ability to learn and use languages to accomplish certain goals. People who have this intelligence are good with words, and it can be either verbal or non-verbal. Writers, poets, lawyers and speakers are among those that have high linguistic intelligence.

2. Interpersonal Intelligence is the ability to understand, negotiate, influence, persuade and communicate effectively with other people. If you have the capacity to understand the intentions, motivations and desires of other people, you probably have this intelligence. Today, it is one of the more sought-after intelligence as people need to work and co-operate with one another. Educators, salespeople, religious and political leaders all have a well-developed interpersonal intelligence.

3. Intrapersonal Intelligence involves the ability to think and analyse. You spend a lot of time reflecting on how you are thinking and feeling. You know your inner self well and are able to appreciate their feelings, fears and motivations. People born with this intelligence tend to dream a lot, self-criticise, breakdown and are able to simplify complicated ideas. This intelligence can be found in psychologists, spiritual leaders and philosophers.

4. Logical-Mathematical Intelligence is the ability to calculate, quantify and carry out mathematical operations. People with this intelligence also have sequence reasoning skills and are able to clearly explain the events that follow the sequence. Are you good at mathematics, able to approach complicated problems by reasoning deductively and thinking logically? Then, you might have found your type of intelligence. This intelligence is most often associated with scientific and mathematical thinking.

5. Physical or Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence entails the potential of using one's whole body or parts of the body for physical movement and action. This intelligence involves a sense of timing and the ability to use mental abilities to coordinate bodily movements. Athletes are great examples of people who possess great physical intelligence.

6. Musical Intelligence involves skills in the performance, composition, and appreciation of musical patterns. People with this intelligence have the ability to recognise and compose musical pitches, tones and rhythms.

7. Visual or Spatial Intelligence is the ability to see and think in three dimensions, in shapes, forms and patterns. Sailors, pilots, sculptors, painters and architects all exhibit this intelligence. They are fascinated with mazes and jigsaw puzzles, able to draw a map after viewing a place or location once, and able to find their way to the desired location after looking at the map.

8. Entrepreneurial or Street-Smart Intelligence is the ability to spot business opportunities, the courage to take calculated risks and the ability to put the resources together to transform into viable businesses. It is also one of the highest forms of paid intelligences.

9. Financial Intelligence is the ability to make money work for you. People with this intelligence type are able to make informed decisions on what, where and when to invest. They are able to understand the big picture created by changes in the economy and they would know how to take advantage of it.

To be a successful property investor, you must know your unique combination of intelligence. You should always leverage on your strengths and at the same time, continuously work on improving your weak areas. How far you ultimately go in life does not depend on your strong areas, but how much improvements you can make to your weak areas.

Let’s say, you are great in all areas except that you lack Interpersonal Intelligence as you are a shy and timid person by nature, and you are not comfortable dealing with people. You may be able to analyse and spot great property deals but you will have immense trouble negotiating with agents or sellers to get a better price and getting the various parties such as lawyers and banks to come together to put the deal together. Later, you will even have trouble finding and dealing with tenants since properties is a people-intensive business. Hence, to succeed in this area, you must work hard on overcoming your weaknesses. The good news is that any skills that you lack or were not born with can be easily learnt through reading books, attending seminars and networking with like-minded people. Another alternative would be to look for a partner who can complement your strengths and weaknesses.

by Milan Doshi

Allah is always by your side, Insha Allah, Insha Allah, Insha Allah

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