It used to be that you were either considered smart or not. This was based on academic achievement and was pretty clear cut. It was the conventional wisdom for over a century. But in the 1980's a new view of “smart” began to emerge and it turned this notion upside down.

Dr. Howard Gardner, a psychologist and professor of neuroscience from Harvard University developed the theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) in 1983. His theory illustrates that there are nine different kinds of intelligence. These various intelligences indicate our real ability to interact with the world, and to navigate life successfully. We all possess varying levels of ability of these different intelligences, and usually, we really shine in a couple of them. Here are the intelligences he identified, described in his words:

Linguistic Intelligence:

The capacity to use language to express what’s on your mind and to understand other people. Any kind of writer, orator, speaker, lawyer, or other person for whom language is an important stock in trade has great linguistic intelligence.

Logical/Mathematical Intelligence:

The capacity to understand the underlying principles of some kind of causal system, the way a scientist or a logician does; or to manipulate numbers, quantities, and operations, the way a mathematician does.

Musical Rhythmic Intelligence:

The capacity to think in music; to be able to hear patterns, recognize them, and perhaps manipulate them. People who have strong musical intelligence don’t just remember music easily, they can’t get it out of their minds, it’s so omnipresent.

Bodily/Kinesthetic Intelligence:

The capacity to use your whole body or parts of your body (your hands, your fingers, your arms) to solve a problem, make something, or put on some kind of production. The most evident examples are people in athletics or the performing arts, particularly dancing or acting.

Spatial Intelligence:

The ability to represent the spatial world internally in your mind — the way a sailor or airplane pilot navigates the large spatial world, or the way a chess player or sculptor represents a more circumscribed spatial world. Spatial intelligence can be used in the arts or in the sciences.

Naturalist Intelligence:

The ability to discriminate among living things (plants, animals) and sensitivity to other features of the natural world (clouds, rock configurations). This ability was clearly of value in our evolutionary past as hunters, gatherers, and farmers; it continues to be central in such roles as botanist or chef.

Intrapersonal Intelligence:

Having an understanding of yourself; knowing who you are, what you can do, what you want to do, how you react to things, which things to avoid, and which things to gravitate toward. We are drawn to people who have a good understanding of themselves. They tend to know what they can and can’t do, and to know where to go if they need help.

Interpersonal Intelligence:

The ability to understand other people. It’s an ability we all need, but is especially important for teachers, clinicians, salespersons, or politicians — anybody who deals with other people.

Existential Intelligence:

The ability and proclivity to pose (and ponder) questions about life, death, and ultimate realities.