Sometimes I wonder what goes on inside some people’s central processing units (CPUs).
Report by Thembe Khumalo
But then, I realise that probably a whole bunch of people are wondering the same about me!
When I come across a retail outlet that closes at lunchtime, or a hairdresser that is open only for half a day on Saturdays and not at all on Sundays, I start wondering whether it’s an issue of niche marketing or something amiss with the “intel” inside.
During this year’s Zimbabwe International Trade Fair period, I sent a friend to a particular shop in Bulawayo to buy something.
She reported back that the shop was closed because the owners were at trade fair! I was left somewhat puzzled given that this is the busiest season of the year for businesses in the City of Kings.
Setting aside people who are minding their own business running their own businesses the best way they know how, I do realise that business acumen is only one type of knowledge or skill and having or not having it does not negate one’s skill or intelligence in other areas. In fact, modern psychology tells us that there are as many as nine types of intelligence, covering areas as diverse as the capacity to discern pitch, rhythm, timbre, and tone in music (known as musical intelligence) to linguistic intelligence which is the ability to derive and express meaning using words and language.
So if you find your four-year-old nephew’s interest in the meaning of life and all things philosophical a little weird, understand that he probably has greater existential intelligence than most people his age, and that this may not relate directly to his mathematical-logical intelligence, which affects his capacity for calculating, reasoning and following sequences.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
Similarly, your 12-year-old sister can have high kinesthetic intelligence and be a joy to observe on the gymnastics field or dance floor, but perhaps low on intra-personal intelligence, being the capacity to plan and direct one’s life using introspective knowledge of oneself.
As a child, I had very low spatial intelligence, getting easily lost even when I was going home from school! Now we have the global positioning system (GPS) that gives me “intel” outside! I am happy to report, however, that I pick up a tune very easily and can usually pull out the thread of a harmony on a first listening (musical intelligence).
The downside of this is that I also pick up accents very easily and you have only to leave me with a foreigner for 20 minutes before I start mimicking their inflections.
That said, it’s good to know that there is a place on the intellectual wire for every kind of bird.
As the old saying goes, some of us are tigers and some of us are leopards. Neither is better than the other.
I am often irritated by themes such as “beauty with brains” because there is an underlying suggestion that beauty would not normally co-exist with brains, and therefore having the two together is an idyllic scenario we should aim for.
This notion is supported by others such as the “dumb blonde” concept which suggests that a beautiful woman is bound to be stupid. The same thinking underscores the inclusion of women in male-dominated groups purely for their “decorative value”.
In direct contrast to this type of thinking is a body of research indicating that in reality people perceive those who are attractive to be more intelligent than those whom they consider unattractive.
Psychology today.com reports that a large number of experiments over the years have shown that, when asked to rate the intelligence or competence of unknown others, people tend to rate attractive others as more intelligent and competent than unattractive others.
An excerpt on the subject from the dailymail.co.uk reads: “Handsome men and women often appear to be blessed with lucky lives.”
Now research has shown they are cleverer than most people as well.
Studies in Britain and America have found they have IQs 14 points above average.
The findings dispel the myth of the dumb blondes or good-looking men not being very bright.
It appears that those already physically blessed attract partners who are not just good-looking, but brainy too, according to research by the London School of Economics. The children of these couples will tend to inherit both qualities, building a genetic link over successive generations between them.” So there you have it. You can have a whole variety of intels inside with beauty to boot!
- Thembe Khumalo writes in her personal capacity. Readers’ comments can be sent to
