Contact:

Thomas Ganey, Author

thomas@discoveringyourintelligence.com

St. Louis, MO—New studies offer encouragement to those who would like to think they can increase their intelligence.

Psychologists have known for some time that one’s IQ is not fixed or static. It is flexible; it can improve. But the same is all the more true of applied intelligence, the mindpower one exercises every day in all the varied circumstances of life. Current studies focus on the positive and sometimes exciting aspects of this potential. “Research is revealing more and more that your mindpower is fluid, an open possibility,” says Professor Thomas Ganey, author of Discovering Your Intelligence: What Nobody Taught You About Your Mind. “Naturally,” he adds, “improvement requires effort. Studies of genius confirm that very thing. While many accomplished geniuses are born with tremendous capabilities, most achieve real excellence through intellectual habits they actively develop.”

When your powers of intelligence are applied constructively, the author says, they reveal themselves plainly in good habits of thinking—openness, for example, and objectivity and exactness. Intelligence is itself a complex learned habit. “That being so,” he continues, “you improve your intelligence in action, through discipline and practice; it becomes a matter of character. And the possibilities are surprising. That’s why professionals in the field frequently emphasize that intellectual character is much more important than native ability when it comes to the mindpower you exercise in life.”

Professor Ganey details twelve cardinal qualities that constitute the character of the intelligent person. He goes on to point out that superb thinkers are more willing than most to oppose their own ideas by way of tests. They will turn around their perspectives with reversible thinking so that, in his words, “the mind folds back on itself.” Further, they are always prepared to invent in order to perceive, realizing that any thinking of any depth is creative. “They are not stuck in the notion that what is, is. They prompt the mind to perform, to perceive anew. They are self-aware and leverage their thinking by allying themselves with the nature of the mind itself.”

Though positive in emphasis, Discovering Your Intelligence does suggest that many people lack an understanding of what actually makes a difference when they exercise thinking in their lives. This shows up in popular attitudes that place too much value on speedy thinking, a perfect memory, answering correctly, and winning debates. “Those attitudes are reinforced in the media,” the author says, “and likewise in the schools. The significance of intellectual character is greatly neglected. Schools and colleges need to realign their curricula to provide genuine training and exercise in the habits of intelligence.”

Thomas Ganey researched intelligence extensively as Professor of Philosophy at Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Missouri. His career in education spanned more than three decades. Discovering Your Intelligence: What Nobody Taught You About Your Mind is available in paperback or e-book at Amazon.com.

# # #

Media: Contact thomas@discoveringyourintelligence.com for interviews, images, or review copies.