Logic, verbal, spatial... what is your type of intelligence?
11 October 2010
Read by 2080 persons
No more IQ dictatorship! Emotion, self-awareness, and physical skill are forms of intelligence, just like rationality or a good command of dialectic.
Intelligence is the quality most expected in a manager. Yet, companies generally have a very narrow view of this essential attribute. Someone who can speak, calculate, and reason is considered intelligent. But what about sensitivity and interpersonal skills? Move along, nothing to see here! It's high time we changed our perspective. There are, in fact, various forms of intelligence where sensitivity, emotion, and the body play a greater role than pure logic. At least, that's what the theory of multiple intelligences, developed since the 1980s by American psychologist and Harvard professor Howard Gardner, argues. For him, we are all endowed with the same "bouquet of intelligences," which each individual expresses more or less depending on their education and environment. Some are gifted at building relationships with those around them, others excel in the art of rhetoric. And you, what are your dominant intelligences? Which one seems the most foreign to you, and which one could simply be "awakened"?
Logical intelligence: it contributes to analysis and decision-making
"In difficult situations, I try to react rationally. This is not spontaneous because, faced with unexpected difficulties, one tends to be overwhelmed by emotion." Cédric Neuville is a young entrepreneur who one day found himself at the head of two companies, one in the field of electronic security, the other in photovoltaics. While the first was flourishing, the second never took off. "I had invested a lot in it," he admits. "And, out of pride, I refused to give up. One day, I took the bull by the horns and put all the figures, all the arguments on the table. I dissected each hypothesis, considered precise timelines." Finally convinced, with evidence to support it, of the futility of his efforts, the entrepreneur decided to throw in the towel. The company no longer exists, but part of its offering has been redesigned and integrated into the first company.
Logical intelligence (or "logico-mathematical," according to Gardner's terminology) is inseparable from an aptitude for analysis and intellectual discussion. People with rational minds are able to reason sequentially. A great managerial asset. "If you announce a global strategic objective for a year, no one feels involved," explains Gauthier Escartin, a manager in the medical field. "That's why I always focus on breaking down the final objective into small, partial challenges." Because they tend to think and act in sequences, rational minds often proceed by analogy: they bring together elements, universes, and contexts that are seemingly distant, which opens up unexpected horizons. For example, they will not hesitate to compare the organization of their department to that of a building, or to draw a parallel between a sales plan and an election campaign, between corporate governance and piloting a passenger plane.
Spatial intelligence: it helps to project oneself and imagine scenarios
For four years, Frédéric Dussart has headed the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) region of EMC, a company in the IT sector. A position that, he explains, requires taking into account both the global and local dimensions of each intervention. "A year ago, I decided to give more autonomy to our Portuguese entity, which until then had been attached to Spain. No indicator imposed such a change, but I understood the functioning of this area well enough to understand that we had to do it. Immediately, we saw the turnover of Portugal take off." This "cartographic" understanding is the expression of a spatial intelligence whose existence no one can deny. This is not limited to physical spaces. More than others, it requires creativity, initiative, and a certain form of boldness. In short, it assumes that one is inclined to project oneself outside the daily routine. The visionary, the strategist, the entrepreneur, and the project manager are thus adepts of visual representation. "Just as astronauts rehearse in a pool the actions they will have to perform in space, visionaries will use a capacity for mental simulation through sketches, drawings, diagrams," summarizes Bruno Hourst, trainer and consultant, author of "Management and multiple intelligences" (Dunod).
Spatial intelligence is also the intelligence of contexts. As early as the 1940s, the American psychologist David Wechsler demonstrated that two individuals with equivalent IQs could be very unequal in their mastery of their environment. Contextual intelligence can therefore be an important differentiating factor, particularly in situations of disruption or crisis. "Taking the right dimension of the environment is to show an ability to develop a systemic vision," analyzes Nathalie Evrard-Steinberg, director of the coaching department at Mercuri Urval. For example, in the case of a merger of two entities, one can overcome the apparent complexity of the situation and not remain a prisoner of the psychodramas that accompany any regrouping of activities.
Verbal intelligence: it pacifies relationships and establishes leadership
As head of operations in a customer relationship management company, Patrick supervises several call centers. A socially "hot" sector where conflict constantly threatens. "In my activity, words are of paramount importance," he emphasizes. "What matters is the precision of the vocabulary. A somewhat vague statement lends itself to multiple interpretations, which can be worrying in a tense social context." Whether it's a written note or a conversation, Patrick weighs every word. "The more precise you are, the more you force your interlocutors to speak the same language. This is a way to prevent attacks, but also to express your authority and gain respect." By using words wisely and adapting your speech to your interlocutors, you also express a capacity for attention and evoke recognition.
"The accuracy of language is also a form of politeness," adds Patrick. It's no wonder that people comfortable with oral expression find it easier to remember proper names. A significant asset in terms of etiquette. "The intelligence of speech is undoubtedly one of the most essential qualities of management," insists Jean-Louis Muller, director at Cegos. "The manager is indeed a relay between hierarchical levels. He must constantly understand, explain, report... The more he masters the subtleties of language, the more he gives this mission the necessary coherence and effectiveness."
Body intelligence: it allows combining confidence and interpersonal skills
Except for becoming a dancer, surgeon, ergonomist, or handler, what role can our body claim in our professional activity? Physical endurance, interpersonal skills, ease on a stage, elegance in gestures are real assets for those who want to assert themselves in a team. Jean-Luc is a store manager in the cultural goods distribution sector. During a seminar where he was asked to participate in a role-playing game, he had a revelation: "I was so stuck that I made others feel at least as uncomfortable as I was myself." He then enrolled in acting classes. "It was a liberation. The shyness that hampered my movements and my relationship with others disappeared. I sometimes surprised myself entering into a flirtatious relationship with my collaborators, totally unthinkable a year ago. I have the impression that everyone feels better around me."
The more one blossoms in one's body, the more one gains confidence. This form of intelligence is a real trump card in the managerial game. Associated with ease of movement, it presents other advantages, particularly for mobile positions: salespeople, multi-site managers, maintenance technicians... More than a predilection for travel and autonomy, it can reveal a taste for change, or even an appetite for risk.
Emotional intelligence: it facilitates self-knowledge and knowledge of others
"The more the context shakes me, the more I focus on myself." Head of the distribution sector at Accenture, Alexis Lecanuet has fifteen years of consulting behind him. He has experienced tense periods. Several times, he has had to question a commercial positioning, to question the organization in place. "It is by thinking calmly, by taking the measure of what I like and what I know how to do that I give myself the means to act." This is the famous Socratic "Know thyself," which Gardner calls "intrapersonal intelligence." "You have to be able to distinguish, analyze, and assume what, in your own behavior, is repetitive," explains Charles Merchin, executive coach. Am I prone to aggression as soon as I am criticized? Okay, but why? And how to overcome it? "Asking these questions is working on self-esteem, a sine qua non condition for the esteem of others," continues Charles Merchin. Alexis Lecanuet says nothing different: "You have to know how to assess your resources to be able to mobilize those of your collaborators."
Aptitude for listening, understanding, and empathy, the intelligence of the other ("interpersonal," this time) proves useful in team management. A collaborator bursts into your office, furious? If you are "emotionally" armed, you know that anger often expresses a request for change. Rather than reacting by being authoritarian, you can, through a simple question ("What can I do?"), defuse the tension. But be careful, of all forms of intelligence, this is the one that most needs a favorable framework to express itself. "In an ultra-productivist management, an empathetic individual will tend to curb their relational capacity," warns Danièle Ruffet, psychotherapist...
Collective intelligence: it's what distinguishes man from the ant
We are more intelligent together than alone. Each of us has experienced this postulate many times. It is based on a most trivial arithmetic rule: two brains mobilize more knowledge than one. Can we then speak of collective intelligence? Not necessarily. Because the latter is more than an addition of aptitudes; it is the ability of a group to exploit the interactions between its different elements to develop knowledge superior to the sum of individual knowledge.
Digital network
This concept, born in the 1990s, is inspired by the Internet and digital networks. Researcher and co-founder of AOL France, Jean-François Noubel ("Collective intelligence, the invisible revolution," TheTransitioner), sociologist Pierre Lévy ("Collective Intelligence. For an anthropology of cyberspace," La Découverte), and consultant Olivier Zara ("The Management of Collective Intelligence," M21 Editions) are its main standard-bearers.
Social animals
This phenomenon is observed in the animal kingdom in social insects (ants, bees), mammals hunting in packs (wolves), or animals moving in formation (dolphins, migratory birds). Ants build complex habitats with barns, incubators, and hibernation rooms. They practice agriculture (mushroom cultivation) or livestock farming (aphids). If it had to act alone, the ant would be unable to survive for long. But this insect lacks five criteria necessary for the emergence of collective intelligence as conceived by researchers: a unique identity that personalizes the group; a social contract establishing rules accepted by all members; a network architecture where everyone can know in real time what is happening in the entity; a learning organization that gives itself the means to constantly feed the shared knowledge and accepts error as a lever of learning; and absolute respect for the individual.
Antibodies
Inapplicable to the anthill, these criteria are, however, compatible with the world of work. The intelligent organization would thus be one that would not simply archive and exchange knowledge, but one that would aim to amplify common intelligence. In fact, this is not so simple. The company develops a powerful antibody: the fear of managers that power will slip away from them! However, these tend to confuse collective reflection and decision-making. One does not, however, prevent the other. Ultimately, no one disputes that the decision rests with one person.
Participatory
The concept of collective intelligence, however, implies a more collaborative and participatory management style in order to organize the diversity of skills and ideas.
Published on July 1, 2010
Posted online on October 12, 2010
capital.fr
Intelligence is the quality most expected in a manager. Yet, companies generally have a very narrow view of this essential attribute. Someone who can speak, calculate, and reason is considered intelligent. But what about sensitivity and interpersonal skills? Move along, nothing to see here! It's high time we changed our perspective. There are, in fact, various forms of intelligence where sensitivity, emotion, and the body play a greater role than pure logic. At least, that's what the theory of multiple intelligences, developed since the 1980s by American psychologist and Harvard professor Howard Gardner, argues. For him, we are all endowed with the same "bouquet of intelligences," which each individual expresses more or less depending on their education and environment. Some are gifted at building relationships with those around them, others excel in the art of rhetoric. And you, what are your dominant intelligences? Which one seems the most foreign to you, and which one could simply be "awakened"?
Logical intelligence: it contributes to analysis and decision-making
"In difficult situations, I try to react rationally. This is not spontaneous because, faced with unexpected difficulties, one tends to be overwhelmed by emotion." Cédric Neuville is a young entrepreneur who one day found himself at the head of two companies, one in the field of electronic security, the other in photovoltaics. While the first was flourishing, the second never took off. "I had invested a lot in it," he admits. "And, out of pride, I refused to give up. One day, I took the bull by the horns and put all the figures, all the arguments on the table. I dissected each hypothesis, considered precise timelines." Finally convinced, with evidence to support it, of the futility of his efforts, the entrepreneur decided to throw in the towel. The company no longer exists, but part of its offering has been redesigned and integrated into the first company.
Logical intelligence (or "logico-mathematical," according to Gardner's terminology) is inseparable from an aptitude for analysis and intellectual discussion. People with rational minds are able to reason sequentially. A great managerial asset. "If you announce a global strategic objective for a year, no one feels involved," explains Gauthier Escartin, a manager in the medical field. "That's why I always focus on breaking down the final objective into small, partial challenges." Because they tend to think and act in sequences, rational minds often proceed by analogy: they bring together elements, universes, and contexts that are seemingly distant, which opens up unexpected horizons. For example, they will not hesitate to compare the organization of their department to that of a building, or to draw a parallel between a sales plan and an election campaign, between corporate governance and piloting a passenger plane.
Spatial intelligence: it helps to project oneself and imagine scenarios
For four years, Frédéric Dussart has headed the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) region of EMC, a company in the IT sector. A position that, he explains, requires taking into account both the global and local dimensions of each intervention. "A year ago, I decided to give more autonomy to our Portuguese entity, which until then had been attached to Spain. No indicator imposed such a change, but I understood the functioning of this area well enough to understand that we had to do it. Immediately, we saw the turnover of Portugal take off." This "cartographic" understanding is the expression of a spatial intelligence whose existence no one can deny. This is not limited to physical spaces. More than others, it requires creativity, initiative, and a certain form of boldness. In short, it assumes that one is inclined to project oneself outside the daily routine. The visionary, the strategist, the entrepreneur, and the project manager are thus adepts of visual representation. "Just as astronauts rehearse in a pool the actions they will have to perform in space, visionaries will use a capacity for mental simulation through sketches, drawings, diagrams," summarizes Bruno Hourst, trainer and consultant, author of "Management and multiple intelligences" (Dunod).
Spatial intelligence is also the intelligence of contexts. As early as the 1940s, the American psychologist David Wechsler demonstrated that two individuals with equivalent IQs could be very unequal in their mastery of their environment. Contextual intelligence can therefore be an important differentiating factor, particularly in situations of disruption or crisis. "Taking the right dimension of the environment is to show an ability to develop a systemic vision," analyzes Nathalie Evrard-Steinberg, director of the coaching department at Mercuri Urval. For example, in the case of a merger of two entities, one can overcome the apparent complexity of the situation and not remain a prisoner of the psychodramas that accompany any regrouping of activities.
Verbal intelligence: it pacifies relationships and establishes leadership
As head of operations in a customer relationship management company, Patrick supervises several call centers. A socially "hot" sector where conflict constantly threatens. "In my activity, words are of paramount importance," he emphasizes. "What matters is the precision of the vocabulary. A somewhat vague statement lends itself to multiple interpretations, which can be worrying in a tense social context." Whether it's a written note or a conversation, Patrick weighs every word. "The more precise you are, the more you force your interlocutors to speak the same language. This is a way to prevent attacks, but also to express your authority and gain respect." By using words wisely and adapting your speech to your interlocutors, you also express a capacity for attention and evoke recognition.
"The accuracy of language is also a form of politeness," adds Patrick. It's no wonder that people comfortable with oral expression find it easier to remember proper names. A significant asset in terms of etiquette. "The intelligence of speech is undoubtedly one of the most essential qualities of management," insists Jean-Louis Muller, director at Cegos. "The manager is indeed a relay between hierarchical levels. He must constantly understand, explain, report... The more he masters the subtleties of language, the more he gives this mission the necessary coherence and effectiveness."
Body intelligence: it allows combining confidence and interpersonal skills
Except for becoming a dancer, surgeon, ergonomist, or handler, what role can our body claim in our professional activity? Physical endurance, interpersonal skills, ease on a stage, elegance in gestures are real assets for those who want to assert themselves in a team. Jean-Luc is a store manager in the cultural goods distribution sector. During a seminar where he was asked to participate in a role-playing game, he had a revelation: "I was so stuck that I made others feel at least as uncomfortable as I was myself." He then enrolled in acting classes. "It was a liberation. The shyness that hampered my movements and my relationship with others disappeared. I sometimes surprised myself entering into a flirtatious relationship with my collaborators, totally unthinkable a year ago. I have the impression that everyone feels better around me."
The more one blossoms in one's body, the more one gains confidence. This form of intelligence is a real trump card in the managerial game. Associated with ease of movement, it presents other advantages, particularly for mobile positions: salespeople, multi-site managers, maintenance technicians... More than a predilection for travel and autonomy, it can reveal a taste for change, or even an appetite for risk.
Emotional intelligence: it facilitates self-knowledge and knowledge of others
"The more the context shakes me, the more I focus on myself." Head of the distribution sector at Accenture, Alexis Lecanuet has fifteen years of consulting behind him. He has experienced tense periods. Several times, he has had to question a commercial positioning, to question the organization in place. "It is by thinking calmly, by taking the measure of what I like and what I know how to do that I give myself the means to act." This is the famous Socratic "Know thyself," which Gardner calls "intrapersonal intelligence." "You have to be able to distinguish, analyze, and assume what, in your own behavior, is repetitive," explains Charles Merchin, executive coach. Am I prone to aggression as soon as I am criticized? Okay, but why? And how to overcome it? "Asking these questions is working on self-esteem, a sine qua non condition for the esteem of others," continues Charles Merchin. Alexis Lecanuet says nothing different: "You have to know how to assess your resources to be able to mobilize those of your collaborators."
Aptitude for listening, understanding, and empathy, the intelligence of the other ("interpersonal," this time) proves useful in team management. A collaborator bursts into your office, furious? If you are "emotionally" armed, you know that anger often expresses a request for change. Rather than reacting by being authoritarian, you can, through a simple question ("What can I do?"), defuse the tension. But be careful, of all forms of intelligence, this is the one that most needs a favorable framework to express itself. "In an ultra-productivist management, an empathetic individual will tend to curb their relational capacity," warns Danièle Ruffet, psychotherapist...
Collective intelligence: it's what distinguishes man from the ant
We are more intelligent together than alone. Each of us has experienced this postulate many times. It is based on a most trivial arithmetic rule: two brains mobilize more knowledge than one. Can we then speak of collective intelligence? Not necessarily. Because the latter is more than an addition of aptitudes; it is the ability of a group to exploit the interactions between its different elements to develop knowledge superior to the sum of individual knowledge.
Digital network
This concept, born in the 1990s, is inspired by the Internet and digital networks. Researcher and co-founder of AOL France, Jean-François Noubel ("Collective intelligence, the invisible revolution," TheTransitioner), sociologist Pierre Lévy ("Collective Intelligence. For an anthropology of cyberspace," La Découverte), and consultant Olivier Zara ("The Management of Collective Intelligence," M21 Editions) are its main standard-bearers.
Social animals
This phenomenon is observed in the animal kingdom in social insects (ants, bees), mammals hunting in packs (wolves), or animals moving in formation (dolphins, migratory birds). Ants build complex habitats with barns, incubators, and hibernation rooms. They practice agriculture (mushroom cultivation) or livestock farming (aphids). If it had to act alone, the ant would be unable to survive for long. But this insect lacks five criteria necessary for the emergence of collective intelligence as conceived by researchers: a unique identity that personalizes the group; a social contract establishing rules accepted by all members; a network architecture where everyone can know in real time what is happening in the entity; a learning organization that gives itself the means to constantly feed the shared knowledge and accepts error as a lever of learning; and absolute respect for the individual.
Antibodies
Inapplicable to the anthill, these criteria are, however, compatible with the world of work. The intelligent organization would thus be one that would not simply archive and exchange knowledge, but one that would aim to amplify common intelligence. In fact, this is not so simple. The company develops a powerful antibody: the fear of managers that power will slip away from them! However, these tend to confuse collective reflection and decision-making. One does not, however, prevent the other. Ultimately, no one disputes that the decision rests with one person.
Participatory
The concept of collective intelligence, however, implies a more collaborative and participatory management style in order to organize the diversity of skills and ideas.
Published on July 1, 2010
Posted online on October 12, 2010
capital.fr
