Brendan Kane explains Bertrand Russell's observation that intelligent people doubt themselves while the unintelligent are overconfident. Self-doubt signals you recognize what you don't know, keeping you open to new information instead of locked into wrong answers.
Bertrand Russell had a simple rule for spotting intelligence. The stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt. Basically what this means is your lack of confidence might actually be a good sign. Not because insecurity makes you intelligent, because intelligent people understand how much they could be missing. They don't assume they know the answer. They admit it when they're still figuring it out. That's what makes them different from everyone else. But the more you understand, The more you see what could be wrong. You notice the problems, you see the other side, and that can make you feel less confident than the people around you. But confidence is not proof of intelligence. Sometimes it's just proof that someone stopped thinking too soon. So if you question yourself or if you hesitate before speaking, don't mistake that for weakness. If you lack confidence, it doesn't mean you lack intelligence. It just means you're the one who sees how much there is to learn.
