I am a HN regular but I don't want to sound boastful so using a one time account.
I have a high but not super-high IQ, about 138. I went to a highly IQ-selective school, and as a result have met people who are smarter. Here is the interesting part: while they can do certain kinds of things better than me (puzzles, certain kinds of math, certain kinds of intricate code, analogies etc). Yet, I have gotten far more interesting things in life done than they have.
Even more interesting, I have discovered that I have thought harder and deeper about many problems than some of the exceptional IQ people I have met. As a result, I can simplify problems that they "only" (!) know how to solve. And this simplifying skill has proved to be extremely valuable in the real world. That skill doesn't seem to be directly implied by super-high IQ alone.
I have a high but not super-high IQ, about 138. I went to a highly IQ-selective school, and as a result have met people who are smarter. Here is the interesting part: while they can do certain kinds of things better than me (puzzles, certain kinds of math, certain kinds of intricate code, analogies etc). Yet, I have gotten far more interesting things in life done than they have.
Even more interesting, I have discovered that I have thought harder and deeper about many problems than some of the exceptional IQ people I have met. As a result, I can simplify problems that they "only" (!) know how to solve. And this simplifying skill has proved to be extremely valuable in the real world. That skill doesn't seem to be directly implied by super-high IQ alone.