Thread: Tell me how to be sharper

In theory, I've always been a pretty smart person, with great knowledge. I can figure a lot of stuff out, and is generally smarter than the average person my age. My physical condition is not as good as it could be, but I'm planing to work on that.
However, my biggest problem is thinking fast. I often see people in my class thinking much faster, in both lessons and conversation.
An example, is if somebody tells me something, it might take me some time to get it, be it a joke, an order or discussion. Sometimes I'm also fast, it kinda depends on various factors.

Don't get me wrong though. It's not like I'm some slowpoke at thinking. I just want to think faster, to process stuff faster.

What kind of stuff can I do in my everyday life, to practice fast thinking, and what kind of actual practices (that I can use time on) are there, to help thinking faster?
Last time I took an IQ test, I scored 112 by the way.

Marvo, don't worry. I have the same problems as you. But I've come to realize that people are just different, so becoming quicker really isn't that big of an issue. The way I see it, it doesn't matter how quick people are at thinking, unless ofcourse you're saving the world. But, there is a way to make you think faster, I think. It's called:

Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training on the Nintendo DS.

I did it throughout my last years of school and I did see a change in Maths class. Although I'm a bit too impatient to work on that in college, as they're like robots and are 5X as fast as me. For example, read the parts in quote:

A kid in my college class has ADHD, he's hyper most of the time (obviously) so his learning is really good. He did a peice of work I was doing in an 8th of the time I did it in. He's pretty smart, but I reckon I'm the same as him, even if he is super quick

Alot of people in my group are alot faster than me. But I can live with it, I hope. There's also another educational video game you could try:

Big Brain Academy on the Nintendo Wii. It's also on Nintendo DS but I find the Wii edition alot easier to put up with.

I put them in quotes because someone told me that when I posted this kind of thread.

Well, if it's any help, it might be an attention thing.
I'm pretty sure that I'm above average, I think there's a good proportion of above average people on this forum, but I have a mood disorder,
which means my mind is thinking of a thousand things at the same time, which makes me talk really fast... about nothing,
which makes me rubbich in chat,

and which makes me seem intelligent but slow at the same time.

So, in short, maybe it's about focus. Are you scatty at all?
A lot of very intelligent people are still scatter-brains.

Next LD you get be all like "OK subconscious, you better make me think faster " and your subconscious will be all like "all right Marvo whatever you say " and you'll wake up and kapow you know? you're all fast now

Edit: here's a copy of a message I sent to someone, perhaps it will elaborate on my somewhat vague post.

"I posted that in a funny way, but yeah it tends to work. Have you ever been in a lucid dream and shouted "increase lucidity now!"? You are much closer to your subconscious in your dreams, and it's easier to get it to listen to you. So shouting "increase clarity" makes your LD more clear most of the time. This might not work, but it's worth a try. (And, of course, this shouldn't be used as an shortcut to serious, rigorous efforts in real life to increase your mental speed. I haven't ever shouted "increase mental speed" in an LD before, but I'm guessing the effects will be somewhat temporary.)"

I don't think I'm scatter minded. Well, I don't know what it is, but I don't think I apply to it

Originally Posted by JD

unless ofcourse you're saving the world.

what you need is an excercise or drill you can do with a friend that tests your sharpness. Improv games are great for this. the format is pretty simple: you drill yourself with a friend and when you are really out in the field you suprise yourself with how much your skills have really been honed.

Somewhere I read/heard that walking around your house with a blindfold over your eyes improves cognitive ability and stuff. In any case, might be kinda fun if you're bored.