Intelligence vs. Experience

It has become evident to me that most people are completely unable to draw the line between innate intelligence or talent and the mere appearance of it after long experience. As a society we seem to assume that just because someone is good at something it’s because they have some natural ability, something that was gifted to them when the entered the world. We seem to disregard the fact that while some people may be naturally predisposed to be particularly good at something it’s generally the hours and hours of practice or study that makes someone an adept in a particular area.

On some levels, I think this is actually a self-defense mechanism. As long as a person believes that they simply aren’t talented enough to do something then they have a bulletproof excuse for remaining as they are. Without this, we are forced to admit that if we were only willing to put forth the effort then we could in fact get an A in math, learn to play the trombone or finally learn to write coherent blog entries. If we can hide behind those misfortunes of birth that are beyond our control our lack of success is guilt-free. Once we come to the realization that with small exception we are in charge of our own limitations, only then can we begin the process of overcoming them. As a computer programmer, I see this mechanism in action every time I tell someone what my profession is. Invariably, the reaction from the listener is something of the form, “Oh, wow. You must be smart; I’d never be smart enough to do that.” I always find this amusing since many of the programmers I have worked with in the past have been among the most moronic people I’ve ever known. I generally don’t bother to bore the speaker with a long diatribe about the basic skills needed to generate computer code and how it’s not particularly complicated or even difficult. Primarily the job is one of repeating what you have seen before and remembering where to find the information you need to repeat that task. It is not, in general, a profession that requires a great deal of intelligence in any sense of the word.

Computer programming is as blue collar as any assembly line job yet the perception is that it requires a gift of nature to do it well. This notion is not limited to vocational pursuits. With few exceptions, I have come to the end of the list of people with whom I can play chess. Most people if they lose at a game with no element of luck will refuse to continue playing. People believe that if they lose a game of chess that it indicates some inferiority of intellect but completely fail to see that chess, like all mental exercises, is one much more heavily influenced by long hours of practice and experience than else.

In summary, I think it important to remember that the only real limitations to our aspirations are those that can be measured externally. Clearly, a five-foot-tall adult will probably not reach seven feet but aside from the extremes we can be what we want to be. In a journey of a thousand miles it’s that first step which is the hardest for it’s that first step that forces us to admit that we can succeed if we only have the determination to do so.