As neuroscientist and author of The Source Tara Swart, M.D., Ph.D., explains to mbg, “Wisdom is the life lessons you pick up through experience and store in your neurons but don’t consciously recall.” Intelligence, on the other hand, is defined as “the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills.” It’s about intellect and the application of that intellect. Swart notes intelligence can be defined in several ways, including emotional intelligence, “But the traditional definition is about using your logic to solve problems and make decisions.” So the difference then is where these qualities come from and how we use them. Wisdom comes through experience, perhaps without us even realizing it, and intelligence, in all its many forms, is often something inherent (or something we consciously work on improving). Wisdom “allows you to recognize patterns and make decisions based on intuition,” Swart says, adding that it’s more of a “felt” sense that something is right or wrong. Intelligence, she explains, “is more about data and ‘knowing.’” However, she says, “As you grow in wisdom and experience, intuition can become far more powerful than logic alone.” Ideally, you can exercise both, so you can not only approach a situation logically (intelligence) but tap into your deeper sense of wisdom or intuition to read between the lines or see the big picture. As Swart puts it, it’s great when your wisdom and intelligence are aligned, “but when logic tells you one thing and intuition tells you another, you have to learn which leads to better outcomes for you.” Wisdom, on the other hand, “is felt usually in the gut or heart and comes with a deep sense of feeling that this is right for you, not just right in general,” she says. It can often be accompanied by visceral sensations like goose bumps or even tears, she adds. Notice how you reached the conclusion you came to; was your thought process more linear and logical? That’s intelligence. Or was it more big picture, and allowed you to draw on past experiences and patterns? That’s wisdom. You can usually get a sense from their answer, as they may say something that’s clearly more logical (intelligence) versus something more big picture that’s related to their own experience (wisdom).
