Does anyone else feel like they get smarter over the years?

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In middle school I felt like I was pretty dumb, not in IQ but in social awareness and in understanding the world and people. Now that I'm 21 I feel a lot smarter, I feel like I understand people a lot more, I feel more confident, I can talk to girls more easily and I pretty much understand how the world works mostly. I used to think I had a bad life but now that I think about it isn't actually bad compared to some people.
I'm not quite sure what triggered the change, maybe it's just the fact of getting older although I do feel that smoking weed has made me a lot smarter, my friends all say they feel dumber because of weed but I actually feel smarter. Then again maybe it hasn't anything to do with weed after all. I wouldn't say all my problems are solved yet but I feel confident that the older I get the better it's gonna be. I find it weird that some people here feel like they got dumber while it's exact the opposite with me. Any ideas?

Well, we do get smarter as we get older. We learn from our experiences, and the older a person gets, the more experiences that person has probably had to learn from. This doesn't necessarily mean that older people are smarter than young people, just that most people know more now than they did a few years ago.

I'd call that wisdom. Cognitive ability does tend to deteriorate over the years, especially if you don't look after yourself.

Feeling smarter as a result of smoking pot is merely a byproduct produced by some temporary reductions of inhibitions along with a bit of seeming "confidence building" gained by your getting away with something ... and that is certainly not bad. However, your friends feel as they do becasue they did not need those effects in the first place, and now continued smoking will likely actually hurt you since it has already done for you all it can.

Sometimes.

No, I know more now, but I don't feel any smarter. In the scheme of things, I would say I am pretty average as things go. I think as you age you become more aware of your limitations and how much more is out there. You get more selective about what you focus on meaning you specialize.

I feel that I have socially grown, over the years. I know how to conduct myself better, in social situations, than I did as a teenager.

When I was little, I thought I knew everything but now that I'm older; I'm smart enough to know that I don't

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NVqvUncTyY[/youtube]

I'm learning so much more than back when I knew it all

i am much duller as an old man- when i was a young person i was much quicker-witted. but i partially make up for it by having more experience.

I used to be obsessively organized and very argumentative but I just don't have the energy anymore. Although I'd like to think I am considerably more efficient.

Yes, but that's what I meant by "smart". Kruger4 stated that he wasn't talking about cognitive ability:



"Smart" has several different meanings.

I'm pretty sure he was talking about wisdom too.



Yes.

When I said smart I was actually talking about everything apart from IQ-wise.

When I was younger I decided to give up on everything and never try. Now that I am older I am doing the opposite and understand hardwork.

I am not smarter but I am wiser.

A 25 year old can say "Oh if I were only I were 15 years old again and know what I know now".

But a 40 year old can say "Oh, if I could be 25 again and know then what I know now".

It never ends.