There’s More Than One Way to Be Smart 🧠✨

I see it all the time in my counselling work with young people and adults alike — the quiet pressure to be a certain type of smart. You know the one… academic, high-achieving, top of the class, good-at-exams smart.

And if you don’t fit that box? It’s easy to feel like you’re not enough.

But here’s the truth: there’s more than one way to be intelligent. And that’s not just a comforting thought — it’s backed by research too.

Psychologist Howard Gardner came up with something called the Multiple Intelligences Theory. It says that we don’t have just one kind of intelligence (like the traditional IQ test measures), but eight different kinds of smarts — and we all have a unique mix.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

🔤 Word Smart – good with words, reading, writing, expressing ideas

🔢 Number Smart – logical thinker, enjoys puzzles and patterns

🎨 Visual Smart – sees the world in images, great at drawing or design

🏃 Body Smart – learns through movement, hands-on activities, sport

🎶 Music Smart – sensitive to sound, rhythm, tone, and melody

🧍🏽‍♀️ People Smart – connects easily, understands others' feelings

🧘 Self Smart – strong self-awareness, reflective, emotionally in tune

🌿 Nature Smart – connected to the natural world, good with animals or plants

So if you’ve ever felt “not smart enough” — whether as a young person navigating school, or as an adult comparing yourself to others — I want you to hear this:

👉 You are smart. You just might be a different kind of smart. And that matters just as much.

In my counselling practice here in Basingstoke, I work with people of all ages who are struggling with self-esteem, pressure to perform, or the feeling that they’re not living up to expectations — from others or themselves. And often, it starts with unlearning the idea that intelligence only looks one way.

🌱 Whether you’re a parent worrying about your child, a student feeling overwhelmed, or an adult carrying old stories from school days… it’s never too late to redefine what success and “being smart” means to you.

If anything here resonated — or if you’re struggling and need someone to talk to — I’m here. You're not alone. 📩 Get in touch if you’d like a chat 💛