The highest form of intelligence

Written By Dan Kaplan
 

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My friend Josh is an educator and a deep thinker. He told me what F. Scott Fitzgerald said:

“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.”

It’s a poetic articulation of an older idea, from Abd al-Rahman III, the 10th-century Caliph of Córdoba, now in Spain.

Two things can be true at the same time.

So if the highest form of intelligence is being able to hold opposing truths, then one of the most beneficial workplace skills must be learning to live with contradiction:

  • “We move fast” and “We value thoughtfulness.”

  • “Be honest” and “Don’t make waves.”

  • “Take risks” but “Don’t fail.”

For the intelligent, these tensions don’t get solved — they get named, held, and managed.

  • “What else might also be true?”

  • “Let’s hold both of those as valid for now.”

  • “That’s the tension we have to navigate.”

  • “I hear a paradox — let’s unpack it instead of picking sides.”

Clarity can be found within contradiction, if you’re willing to enter dialogue.

Thanks, Josh!

 

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Dan Kaplan https://www.confidentcommunicator.com
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