<p>it just dawned upon me that intellgence/talent is greater than hard work. i used to think that hard work was all one needed but after studying about 30 hours per week every single week for one of my engineering classes and after taking the midterm and bombing it with an F i realized that</p>
<p>Intelligence, talent > hard work</p>
<p>thank you.</p>
<p>and have a nice life.</p>
<p>I agree with you 100%. It always amazes me that in some classes I never study and I get a B and in another class where I study I get a D.</p>
<p>I still haven't found a correlation between studying and getting good grades.</p>
<p>Can I know what universities you go to? Do they take transfers?</p>
<p>I tend to agree that intelligence is, in most cases, the most significant factor. But, I tend to outperform slightly smarter people through hard work. Lazy but brilliant people still won't do that well. And it's always best to rely on working hard, because there isn't much you can do about innate ability. But I totally feel your pain, it's like the most frustrating thing ever.</p>
<p>Is there a club for this? I'm in.</p>
<p>what class is that?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>probability theory b.s.</p>
<p>Some aspects of education require intelligence, some require hard work. Generally, I'd actually say the harder workers do better.</p>
<p>I don't know many hard workers working as CEOs or designing skyscrapers.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I don't know many hard workers working as CEOs or designing skyscrapers.
[/quote]
Then you don't know many CEOs or skyscraper designers. </p>
<p>People who never learned to work hard find their lives quite difficult in the real world. Tiger Woods, undoubtedly one of the most talented golfers ever, spends more hours on the putting green than his competitors. Intelligence (up to a certain level) and talent (to some extent - some people have "math brains" and some don't, for example) may be prerequisites, but they are seldom sufficient for success.</p>
<p>i think most people have worked hard before they became famous. and when they become famous, it looks on the outside as if they haven't worked and just got there by talent.</p>
<p>What I meant to say is, while CEOs and people who work designing skyscrapers are undoubtedly hardworking, they didn't get to where they are only because of their hard work, they also got there because of their intelligence. You might say, well, you can't make it to top if you are intelligent but not hard working. That's often the case, save a few exceptions, but it's better to be intelligent because intelligent people can always choose to get their act together and work hard. There is not much the hard working person who is not overly intelligent can do to rise to the top.</p>
<p>There are other qualities besides hard work and intelligence that mold success. One would be the quality of humility - if you are using a particular method that's inefficient that isn't working out well, asking someone else to critique your approach could result in a change that brings about better efficiency.</p>
<p>i think the harder you work the better you become at things, and if you are studying hard and still failing then you must study harder. i believe you can gain intelligence by working hard. saying that you are just not smart enough is just a dumb excuse.</p>
<p>^not true lol</p>
<p>
[quote]
i think most people have worked hard before they became famous. and when they become famous, it looks on the outside as if they haven't worked and just got there by talent.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>You hit the nail on the head.</p>
<p>Here's the big secret:</p>
<p>bcmcghee's right to an extent.</p>
<p>Obviously, everyone has a different potential. Like Thomas Edison said, "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration". Whether you believe it or not, it is (mostly) true.</p>
<p>I think another equally important factor for being successful is people skills. All the successful people I've met have been able to hold an interesting conversation on just about anything, or even just walk up to strangers and make small talk.</p>
<p>Never underestimate people skills, it just boosts your market value no matter the major or field.</p>
<p>I guess the main idea behind this thread is that some people can hardly study and get by well, and some study hard and have an epic fail. </p>
<p>I fit into the first group, generally I've never studied 24 hours on any test(I'd say my avg study time was 6 hrs, not including breaks and time wasted), but still I managed to get through college in a relatively difficult field of engineering. But all that said, the most intelligent person in my class was the one that studied the most, and in fact I had an average grade compared to the rest of the class.</p>
<p>If you study 30 hours for several weeks and fail the midterm, it's not a problem of intelligence, talent, OR hard work. There's something seriously wrong with either your chosen major, or your system or studying.</p>