People skills are not intelligence

People skills are not a measure of raw intelligence.

They usually grow at different rates, each with its own pace, based on the individual's and the environment's needs. Some people are exceptionally skilled at interacting with others – reading rooms, building rapport, navigating dynamics –, but you cannot judge their capacity for deep thinking, problem solving, and ethical reasoning.

What I observed is that we tend to trust people more often when they have better people skills. Because it's easier to measure, if you meet someone and talk for 10 minutes, you can tell if they communicate well or if they're empathetic. It's right there.

To assess intelligence, you need to have similar substance to even recognize if someone is smart in that area. That's why we default to what's easier – and we end up trusting the smooth talker more than the person who actually knows their stuff.

To build value for ourselves and for others, we need to develop both. People skills – they come from social situations, from feedback, from dealing with people regularly. Intelligence – that needs sustained focus. You have to dig deep into problems, stay with difficult stuff, and build expertise over time.

Imagine a situation where someone can be brilliant at making people comfortable but average at solving complex problems. Someone else can solve tough problems beautifully, but struggles to explain what they did. Both are incomplete. When you find someone with both? That's when real value gets created.

We need to watch when people prioritize people skills over building intelligence to achieve their goals. When being liked becomes more important than being right. When the person who presents well gets more credit than the person who solved the problem. Then, you've set the wrong incentives.

People optimize for what you value. Choose carefully.

The same goes for yourself. Respect your own pace. You might be great at one and need work on the other. That's not a problem. That's just where you are.