Reasonably speaking a car cannot drive itself, no matter how superior a machine or fancy its label.
A person can be as smart as they come and still struggle with most basic aspects of life due to inflexibility, extreme self worth, and/or poor attitude.
Life is what we make of it. Book smart intelligence is a single aspect of the human experience and too often it becomes a problematic focus.
e.g. Having to outsmart everyone else around them...being the smartest person in the room, no exception. Certain types of people spend their lives trying to out do everyone else in the arenas they are good at.
I've met folks like this, they are a trial to be around, often condescending and entitled. They are inflexible in perspective and do not look for potential in anything that isn't their own idea. They have no capacity for compromise on anything.
Flipside I know others who are extremely bright, but they don't make a point of proving intellectual superiority to those around them. They have excellent people skills and adaptive reasoning capabilities that enhance their problem solving skills. Book smarts in balance with common sense and social integration. Great people to be around, who are comfortable with themselves and take things in stride instead of perceiving every differing opinion as a personal insult or criticism.
These are the type of people who foster objective or lively discussions because they allow space for others, they are not the be all, end all who shoved the discussion into a corner and proceeds to sit on the ball.
A flexible collective of reasonably smart people have the statistical probability of greater creative and productive capacity than the self proving smartest guy with a superiority complex.
Real world example:
My dogs Rue and Zwi. Rue knows how to spell, count, and has a hundred different tricks. Flipside is Rue is highly people selective, requiring a slow, treat backed introduction. If he doesn't jive within that first initial contact, he will never warm up to that individual. He is also too smart for his own good and requires a huge time commitment and enrichment to keep him off a path of destructive boredom. I'm able to provide it. He has just as many vices as virtues. In terms of shelter placement, he would rate a difficult, but I understand his needs and shortcomings and we work with both aspects.
Zwi barely understands his own name and about four basic commands. He's the sweetest natured dog and never gets into trouble. (It doesn't occur to him to do so, that he could simply because of his sheer size. He doesn't have the mental capacity to consider it.) He loves everything that has a pulse and is a friend to everyone. He is popular everywhere he goes because he is just so mellow. He is a ridiculously easy dog to have and is no trouble. He also bores me to tears, sweetheart that he is.
Our cat, Potato, treats Zwi exactly like he does the coffee table. Just a piece of furniture that moves...and Zwi doesn't know the difference.
My high demand, high energy drama queen who requires five times the time and energy of Zwi is by far and away my favourite simply because he requires continuous effort. He is a challenging dog and not a good fit for most folks. But he doesn't live with most folks, he's my dog. He's a perfect fit, but is far from perfect. He is worth effort he requires. Being a favourite of Rue is a whole different level of loyalty. His respect isn't easily earned, but once you have it his willingness and learning capacity are startling.
Zwi does not have that learning capacity, but has such a mild temperament he is universally liked. They are a dichotomy of personality and capability types, and as such have different needs.
Personally, I have several vices in common with Rue. I am very people selective in terms of those I allow into my social circles. I can be perfectly civil, but I won't invest anything more than basic politeness requires. I don't turn 'On'. I don't share the reality of what goes on in my head or what I can do when I chose to actively engage.
Being able to read those around you well enough to know when it is effective to engage or when you know it will be a waste of time is a skill set in itself. One of those balance aspects that is taken for granted, much like simply kindness often is.
