IntelliGENT

One of my best friends, whom I also get to call my mentor of sorts, is one of the smartest gentlemen I know. Each time that he speaks he commands the room, demands the attention of anyone around him, and asserts himself in a way that draws interesting people in. Sometimes those people are pretty eccentric all together.

With all these people “flaunting” to him, he still manages to love each and every one of them so unconditionally that it’s hard not to love him back.

He is what I would call a perfect example of an IntelliGENT.

It’s not his educational background that gives him the platform to perform, but rather his cunning wit and sharp mind that gives him the clarity and voice to be heard. He is an advocate for,

“it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

When he first spoke those words, I was appalled. Ever since I graduated from Northwest Nazarene University, I have felt that my education has been undermined. Then I started thinking about my experience back in college. It really wasn’t the education that kept me going forward to graduation. It was the people who I dedicated those four years to that kept me going.

I still value my education highly. I wouldn’t trade it for anything; but the people who my education placed me in front of is what got me to the place I am now. It’s where I met this man of wisdom.

The more I thought about that statement, the more it became a reality. It IS the people who I know that get me to the places I need to be. Actually, let me rephrase that, it is the AUTHENTIC people who I know, that get me to the places I need to be. That statement has since rocked my world.

This man is a dedicated thought leader in his industry; leading those with clouded futuristic thinking, to a more clear, more obtainable future. He is a promoter of “blowing things up” in one’s life, to put it all back together, but in a different, better way! He is a disruptor of brands, challenges the status quo, and cannot stop thinking of ideas that will radically change this world. All of these things I categorize in the title: IntelliGENT.

So with this example, I pose the question to you. Are you what it takes to be IntelliGENT? Are you willing to be authentic and clear minded to see through this world’s BS and think for yourself? Do you want to be an authentic leader brand? Are you ready to step up and take the lead in your industry? Are you ready to blow something up in your life to make a change for the better? I support you, and so will any of the IntelliGENTS that I write about.

Be on the lookout for more leaders to be named IntelliGENTS this year.

If you’re interested in who this man is, his name is Justin Foster. He is a brand strategist and the #humanbacon curator, among other insightful titles that far exceed my ability to write about. Check him out!   

Instagram: fosterthinking

Twitter: @fosterthinking

Website: Fosterthinking

Book: Human Bacon