The Complete Book of Intelligence Tests : 500 exercises to improve, upgrade and enhance your mind strength (13 page)

tempered with a degree of modesty and sensitivity towards others.

25–39 points

Your score indicates that you are no more of an extrovert or an

introvert than the average person.

Although you sometimes may wish that you could be as outgoing

as those who appear more extrovert than yourself, it may be that by

having the ability to show reserve, especially when it is appropriate,

you are probably regarded by other people as someone who they feel

relaxed about having in their company.

If, at times, you feel that you are a little shy and ‘backward at

coming forward’, it may be that you secretly admire the way people

who are more extrovert than you behave. It is, however, these people

who are in the minority and, in fact, you are probably regarded by

other people as a person who does possess a much more appealing

personality.

Less than 25 points

Although your score indicates that you are quite introverted, this

does not mean that you cannot be successful in life.

Many people are extremely modest and shy, but at the same time

have the ability to be high achievers in their own field, providing they

can recognise their own talents and gain an extra bit of self-confidence

to harness their potential.

Although you may prefer to keep your views to yourself, on those

occasions where you are bursting to express an opinion, or join in a

conversation, you may be afraid of doing so because you worry about

what people think, especially if there are a number of people present.

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This may be indicative of a lack of confidence in how people will

react to you, even to the extent of a feeling of inferiority.

It may be that you do not lack the inner self-confidence and belief

in yourself, but are afraid of expressing this inner self in public. You

should, however, make a concerted effort to try and gain that extra

degree of self-confidence to harness your potential even more and try

not to be backward at coming forward.

Test 5.3

Optimist or pessimist

In each of the following, choose from a scale of 1^5 which of these

statements you most agree with or is most applicable to yourself.

Choose just one of the numbers 1^5 in each of the 25 statements.

Choose 5 for most agree=most applicable, down to 1 for least agree=least

applicable.

1 I believe that superstitious beliefs, e.g. ‘breaking a mirror brings

7 years’ bad luck’, are bunkum.

5

4

3

2

1

2 I never even notice the fire regulations when staying in a hotel, let

alone read them.

5

4

3

2

1

3 I believe in keeping my aspirations high at all times.

5

4

3

2

1

4 You must speculate to accumulate.

5

4

3

2

1

5 When one door closes another one always opens.

5

4

3

2

1

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6 I never lose sleep through worrying.

5

4

3

2

1

7 I am constantly on the lookout for opportunities to move on to

new and exciting ventures.

5

4

3

2

1

8 In life, there is an ideal partner for everyone.

5

4

3

2

1

9 Every dog has his day.

5

4

3

2

1

10 In the long run, things always turn out for the better.

5

4

3

2

1

11 If I lent money to a friend, it would never occur to me that I

might not get it back.

5

4

3

2

1

12 I fully expect that one day I will be a big winner on the lottery or

premium bonds.

5

4

3

2

1

13 I never worry about my health.

5

4

3

2

1

14 Things are never quite as bad as they appear.

5

4

3

2

1

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15 It is a waste of time going to the doctor with minor complaints

such as a mild dose of ’flu.

5

4

3

2

1

16 If at first you don’t succeed, you should try, try and try again.

5

4

3

2

1

17 I rarely or never worry about my financial situation.

5

4

3

2

1

18 I am always hopeful that the next stroke of good fortune is just

around the corner.

5

4

3

2

1

19 It is always possible to find a silver lining to every cloud if you

look hard enough and long enough.

5

4

3

2

1

20 Ultimately, good will always triumph over evil.

5

4

3

2

1

21 I look forward to the post arriving in the morning.

5

4

3

2

1

22 I very rarely carry an umbrella around with me.

5

4

3

2

1

23 I always look forward to the future with high expectations.

5

4

3

2

1

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24 Something positive always comes from adversity.

5

4

3

2

1

25 I am all in favour of taking calculated risks.

5

4

3

2

1

Assessment

Total score 90–125

Mr Micawber was Charles Dickens’ eternal optimist, always expecting

that something would turn up. Your score indicates that you are a

twenty-first century Mr Micawber.

This is a wonderful and enviable outlook on life to possess. You

have the ability somehow to look on the bright side whatever happens

and firmly believe that for every dark cloud a silver lining will appear,

and that for every bad event something positive will emerge.

Provided you do not become naÿ«ve or complacent about life’s

sometimes harsh realities, you will remain largely cheerful and to a

great extent carefree, knowing that by adopting this attitude you can

get the best out of life, just as long as you are prepared to accept the

inevitable downs with the ups.

Total score 65–89

Life is to a great extent a roller coaster, it can be exciting and

stimulating, there are high points and there are low points.

Like the majority of people, you cannot be described as either a

pessimist or an optimist. Instead you are a realist, but you are hopeful

that the high points in life exceed the low points, which they usually

do, providing that we do not exaggerate the low points in our own

mind, to the exclusion of the high points.

Although you do not appear to be a pessimist, perhaps one lesson

to be learned from the eternal optimist is that pessimists, indeed

people in general, always seem to worry too much. It is a fact worth

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bearing in mind that most of the things we worry about in life never

happen anyway, so that in the majority of cases we are worrying

unduly.

Total score less than 65

Although you might prefer to describe yourself as a realist, your

score does suggest that you have a predominantly pessimistic outlook

on life.

Unfortunately this does mean that you are probably perceived by

others as a somewhat negative person, and that you frequently suffer

from a degree of inner turmoil and loss of sleep.

This is possibly your own way of creating a defensive emotional

shield against the consequences of what the future may have in store.

Then, if the worst happens, you have prepared yourself for it, but if

things turn out better than you anticipated you will feel good ^ until

you start to prepare yourself for the next potential catastrophe.

In actual fact, such a pessimistic attitude does not make anything

better or worse in the end, and in some cases causes worry that can

lead to stress-related illness and make negative things happen which

would not otherwise occur.

One strategy to counteract an overriding pessimistic attitude is not

to make mountains out of molehills. Instead, try to concentrate on the

positive aspects of life and put negative thoughts to the back of your

mind.

Unfortunately this is not so easy to achieve, especially if it is not in

your nature to do this, but it is worth the effort as you will then start

to feel the benefits, both health-wise and by an improved outlook on

life in general.

Test 5.4

Self-confidence

Answer each question or statement by choosing which one of the

three alternative responses given is most applicable to you.

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1 Do you usually feel good about yourself?

a) Sometimes.

b) Yes, I generally do.

c) Not particularly.

2 Would you relish the opportunity to take part in a political debate

on television?

a) Not relish the opportunity; however, I may take part but

would be quite nervous about it.

b) Yes, very much so.

c) No, the thought sounds rather scary.

3 How much do you feel in control of your own life?

a) Only partly in control.

b) Very much.

c) Not very much.

4 Do you enjoy circulating and meeting new people at social

gatherings?

a) I don’t mind meeting new people but generally stay within

my own circle of acquaintances.

b) Yes.

c) No, I prefer to stay within my own circle of acquaintances.

5 How often do you worry about living up to the standards of

others?

a) Occasionally.

b) Never.

c) More than occasionally.

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6 Would you be afraid of standing up and making your point of

view known at a public meeting?

a) Not afraid, but somewhat nervous perhaps.

b) No.

c) Yes.

7 What is most likely to be your reaction if told there was to be a

complete reorganisation at your place of work?

a) Somewhat apprehensive.

b) If possible I would like to be involved in the reorganisation,

and would tend to look on the positive side in case it

presented me with a better career opportunity.

c) Quite alarmed, as such changes frequently lead to

redundancies or adverse changes to job descriptions.

8 Are you able to bounce back quickly after serious adversity?

a) Usually, although it depends to a great extent on how serious

an adversity.

b) Yes, I find that I am usually able to bounce back quickly,

even from serious adversity.

c) Not really, as it takes quite some time to bounce back from

serious adversity.

9 Do you ever feel self-conscious in public places?

a) Sometimes.

b) Never.

c) Often.

10 Do you believe it is fun sometimes to live dangerously?

a) Perhaps just occasionally.

b) Yes.

c) No.

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11 When you gamble, what are your expectations of winning?

a) I am usually cautiously optimistic.

b) I am usually very optimistic.

c) I am usually not optimistic.

12 When you are having an argument do you always stick to your

guns if you honestly believe that you are correct?

a) Usually I stick to my guns, but may terminate the argument

with a comment such as, ‘We will have to agree to differ’.

b) Yes, I relish a debate and would try even harder to get my

point across.

c) Sometimes I have given up an argument and started to think

that I might not be correct after all.

13 How often do you put yourself down?

a) Occasionally.

b) Rarely or never.

c) More than occasionally.

14 Would you feel nervous about meeting someone very influential

or famous?

a) Somewhat nervous.

b) No, in fact I would relish the opportunity.

c) Very nervous.

15 How often do you feel sad or depressed about your personal

circumstances?

a) Occasionally.

b) Rarely or never.

c) More than occasionally.

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16 What is your reaction if someone is being particularly unhelpful

and negative?

a) Persevere quietly with trying to make the person understand

what you require.

b) Express your annoyance to them.

c) Accept the situation and keep your feelings to yourself.