Is your IQ important to you?

I feel that IQ testing is a good "sorting" tool, along with other tests as a compilation of data to measure one's intellectual aptitude (not abilities, motivation, etc., please note that I distinguish aptitude from such qualities). Chances are, given normal conditions (eg. The child has no physical or mental disabilities, a stable home life and proper materials), a child with an IQ of 115 is more likely to excel, academically (in which areas they would excel would require additional tesing), than a child with an IQ of say, 98 (which falls into what is considered "Average").

That said, aside from using IQ testing as a screening tool and reference point, I believe that more tests are required to truly measure one's intellectual apititude. Ability, motivation and actual propensity to achieve are different matters. IQ does not measure intelligence, per se, rather, it measures reasoning skills and speed at which one is able to learn. Like I said, good screening tool and reference point, but I believe that it is only most effective in actually INDICATING intelligence when compiled with other testing.

Honestly, I don't believe that IQ has much bearing on actual intelligence when standing alone, assuming one defines intelligence as reasoning skills, capacity to make beneficial decisions etc. Looking at my test results, I have an IQ of 130. Looking at other various test results, my reading comprehension skills and articulation skills as well as reasoning skills, would rank superior, whilst my mechanical skills are slightly above average and my spatial skills are inferior.

But when I simply state to you that I have an IQ of 130, one assumes that all of my skills are superior. That is surely not the case, however, my lack of superior spatial skills did not stop me from attaining a superior IQ. That said, my reasoning skills, if followed would probably lead me to much greater success if I actually used them, however, I like to ignore my own input. But repeated testing shows that my intellect is superior? Even with inferior spatial skills? Obviously, there is much, much more to intelligence than IQ.

So I will side with Stephen Hawking on this one, when he says that IQ does not determine how one lives their lives. I believe that IQ is a great measuring tool, a great aptitude test, and with other testing, can put together a grand grouping of data explaining one's intelligence, however, I truly, truly do believe that it is application of intelligence that counts to most. You can measure the water in the cup all you like, but if you have a full cup and only pour 1/4th onto a flower, how does it help you to have a full cup anyway?

It can be argued that IQ tests reasoning skills and reasoning skills (such as foresight, what will benefit me in the long run) are important, and one would apply higher reasoning skills if they truly had higher reasoning skills and I would agree, but I do not think that IQ testing alone is an accurate enough measurement of reasoning skills as a whole, at least not enough to sort through those with tested IQs and determine their reasoning skills based on numbers alone. It is far more likely that one with an IQ of 123 will have greater reasoning skills than a person with an IQ of 98, assuming all testing is fair, but it is no where near likely enough to simply assume based on IQ testing.

Please note, for the sake of the argument, that the term superior is used to denote the occurence of being placed in or around the area of the highest percentile for the given group being tested; far above average, with little above it as a statistic.

ANYHOW to answer your question, no, my IQ is not very meaningful to me, outside of the context of screening, it really does not mean too much to me. I prefer tests that test my aptitude (my testing that shows which skills I am best at and which skills I am weakest at) mean more to me than testing of my actual "intelligence". I think one would need more than a simple IQ number to truly denote a person's reasoning skills. IQ is a handy number to have to give someone the general idea of where your aptitude may fall, but I don't feel that it is anywhere near the end all be all indicator of intelligence.