There is no magic wand that will make you smarter, but there are things you can do to help improve your chances of becoming smarter.

Don’t look at these hobbies as routes to greater intelligence. Look at them as ways to treat your mind in a way that improves your chances of becoming smarter.

These hobbies are definitely a better alternative than other hobbies and pastimes if you wish to become smarter.

1. Exercise Regularly.

Do not be dissuaded by the lumbering fools who play professional sport. They may appear of less-than-average in intelligence, but that is because they have dedicated every drop of their focus and learning to their sport of choice.

Exercise alone will not make you smarter, but it will help to keep your brain efficient.

It will help maintain your attention levels, and it encourages a level of psychological well-being that is tough to find elsewhere.

There are many people who believe that poor health and a generally unfit body creates a serious lag in a person’s cognitive ability. It probably isn’t true. But even if being healthy means you get sick less often, then you will have more time to acquire knowledge and improve your critical thinking skills.

2. Read Daily.

Read fiction, as it flexes your imagination in a way that movies and computer games are unable to do. If you read self-help books and books that teach you things, then you are likely to gain new knowledge.

If you are a very self-aware reader, you may also critically analyze the text you are reading.

We all have a lazy tenancy to agree with what we are reading, especially if we are enjoying the book. If you are aware of your own bias, then you may also flex your critical thinking skills as you read books.

3. Give Yourself a Few Moments Every Day.

The most common tip is for you to meditate. It gives you a few moments to yourself where you may cover issues in your mind that you may otherwise neglect.

People who do things such as meditation are more likely to make smart and intelligent decisions because they have given their ideas a little more thought. Obviously, this is not always the case, but it is more likely to occur if you give yourself some time every day.

People who smoke enjoy these types of benefits because they take short ten-minute breaks during their day.

Productive people think things over and reach conclusions that they may not have done otherwise if they had kept themselves busy all day.

People who pray to a creator/god or people who talk things over with a creator will also enjoy the same benefits. Which may explain why so many powerful people in history have also been devout believers in a god/creator.

4. Learning a New Language.

Susan Rich, a CEO of  Assignment Masters , said: “Communication and language are so heavily imposed on our brains that it is widely believed that some of it is instinctual. After all, why do babies around the world smile? Why do our brains go into high alert when a stranger raises a hand above his/her chest when talking to us?”

Learning a new language creates new pathways in our minds, which is what happens whenever we learn anything new. But learning a new method of communication creates new pathways in very old and usually untouched areas of our brains.

This is why some people who live in a country where their own language is not the most common will often be surprised that they are actually thinking in another language rather than simply speaking it.

5. Teach.

For some reason, people seem to learn better if they teach others.

For example, if you are learning a new language, then write blog posts on what you have learned. Try to keep in mind that others will read your blog posts and take your word at face value.

You have an obligation to get it correct, but more than that, you will absorb and remember the information better if you are teaching it to others.

That is not to say that all teachers are smart; far from it in fact. There are plenty of dumb teachers out there, but the things they teach are so ingrained in their minds that they would have to live two lifetimes in order to forget it.

The things you learn can be forgotten in a matter of days, weeks or years. However, the things you teach will stick with you forever.

Stop Looking for a Shortcut.

There is no shortcut to becoming smarter, and your hobbies are no guarantee that it will happen. Yet, the activities mentioned in this article will help you on your quest to becoming smarter.

They will not carry you, nor will they direct your intellect acquiring efforts, but they will offer a helping hand.

Think of these hobbies as the tires on your car. You can fit your car with these hobbies and have thick and soft tires with deep tread. Or, you can try hobbies such as TV watching, game playing, or recreational drugs and fit your car with bald and slippery tires.

What would it be?