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Is Your IQ Overrated?

Keld Jenson is a contributor for Forbes on­line and has written about the other types of intelligence beyond IQ: Emotional Intel­ligence (EQ), Moral Intelligence (MQ) and Body Intelligence(BQ). He writes that your IQ “pales in comparison with your EQ, MQ and BQ scores when it comes to predicting your success and professional achievement. “

“By itself, a high IQ does not guarantee that you will stand out and rise above everyone else.” Research carried out by the Carnegie Institute of Technology shows that 85 per­cent of your financial success is due to skills in “human engineering,” your personality and ability to communicate, negotiate, and lead. Shockingly, only 15 percent is due to techni­cal knowledge. I would argue that this trans­lates to investment success, as well.

Emotional Intelligence

Jenson says EQ is the most well-known of the three, and in brief it is about “being aware of your own feelings and those of others, regulating these feelings in your­self and others, using emotions that are appropriate to the situation, self-motiva­tion, and building relationships”.

It goes without saying that regulating one’s emotions should play a huge role in investment decision making. On the fol­lowing page, Mike Minter explores this concept in greater detail.

Moral Intelligence

MQ deals with your integrity, responsibili­ty, sympathy, and forgiveness. The way you treat yourself is the way other people will treat you. Keeping commitments, main­taining your integrity, and being honest are crucial to moral intelligence. The au­thor suggests “making fewer excuses and taking responsibility for your actions.”

In what endeavor is integrity and taking responsibility for one’s actions more im­portant than managing one’s finances?

Body Intelligence

Lastly, there is your BQ, or body intel­ligence, which the author says, “reflects what you know about your body, how you feel about it, and take care of it. Your body is constantly telling you things; are you listening to the signals or ignoring them?” Jensen says you can listen to your body’s messages about your health and that it will tell you if you are not getting plenty of sleep or eating the right foods.

Jensen sums up, “It doesn’t matter if you did not receive the best academic training from a top university. A person with less education who has fully developed their EQ, MQ, and BQ can be far more successful than a person with an impressive educa­tion who falls short in these other catego­ries.”

This same idea of balance influences our investment philosophy and strategy. In­corporating academic, emotional, and moral factors helps us design portfolios that are most likely to achieve your long term goals.

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