The Case Against Intelligence

Human society has always valued intelligence quite highly, particularly in comparison to the various other faculties human beings possess, be it creativity, intuition, strength, beauty or empathy. I am not an academic, but based on my life experiences in the personal, social, academic and professional spheres, I would like to share certain perspectives - and in short, I would propose to make a case against intelligence!

• Intelligence is typically a comparative term just like strength or beauty. For e.g., if you take 100 people with the same Intelligence or strength, then no one in particular can be labelled intelligent or strong. Hence Intelligence is always a divisive quality and not a unifying one, in a social context. Taken as a whole, collective intelligence of the human race would be the same as collective stupidity of it. So Intelligence is inherently "rent seeking", in an Economist's parlance. And while rent seeking behaviour enables economic progress and advancement, it does not so much benefit the society in the long run. 
• So society does not benefit much, but what about the individual? This is a bit difficult to judge either way, but there are empirical points to be made. The rest is up to you, as an individual to decide what is right for you. In short spurts, when you take life as a 70-80 year journey, intelligence is of immense value, particularly in the early stages of academics or profession. But what I have seen is that it just ensures you have a foundation or a platform in that space. Inevitably, there is always much more pressure and competition and an insatiable hunger for achievement that ends up dragging down your health, both mental and physical, as well as your relationships and ultimately leaves you with long bouts of dissatisfaction interspersed with short lived "highs". Most people who introspect during the so called "mid-life crisis" never feel that they should have been more intelligent - they always realise they lacked in empathy or let go of their health and relationships. 

So ultimately for man, is it better to be intelligent and unhappy or creative and empathetic and happy? IQ or EQ, ladies and gentlemen - where does our pivot lie?

Note: This is a personal blog. All views expressed in this article are personal and do not reflect that of my employer. This is just a perspective to provoke thought and not a fully formed argument.