Downplaying your Intelligence

In the hierarchy of conceit, intelligence reigns.

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If you want to soften people’s guard, the evident faculty to downplay is intelligence, but the other two facets to downplay are judgement and experience as both draw up close to intellect on the hierarchy of conceit.
Make them feel superior to you in these faculties, and you will have them at the tip of your fingers.

It is the ideal camouflage to seem less clever than you are and at times, somewhat of an idiot to confound people.
The sense of intellectual superiority you can induce in people by means of cognitive reassurance through indirect modes will lay down their doubt and suppositions and will be coerced easier to your side.
Do not communicate this implication through direct means, though, utilise concealed and roundabout methods as these are more subtle and potent.

A gesture of admiration at their intellectual ability, for instance, can go a long way.
Remember: It will not serve you to divulge and show off your intelligence, especially if you are incalculably superior, make it habitual to denigrate your intelligence continually.

When you have power, do not be overt about it.

Feign a lesser position.
On the other hand, you can’t carry yourself in a half-witted manner, especially if you have people above you who are superiors, you must make it apparent, through your eloquence and articulation, that you are brighter than your rivalries.
As you are more established, though, you must carefully lessen your genius to keep people on your side.

Lastly, if people discover the truth underlying your modesty and humbleness, they will not resent you for it.
Instead, they will admire your capacity for discretion rather than exhibiting your great intellect among everyone.

There is but one exception, of course, where it will serve your benefit to oppose this rule.
There will be conditions where masking a deception will demand a display of brainpower, in such circumstances, do not conceal it but encompass it.

More from For later read

The common understanding of propaganda is that it is intended to brainwash the masses. Supposedly, people get exposed to the same message repeatedly and over time come to believe in whatever nonsense authoritarians want them to believe /1

And yet authoritarians often broadcast silly, unpersuasive propaganda.

Political scientist Haifeng Huang writes that the purpose of propaganda is not to brainwash people, but to instill fear in them /2


When people are bombarded with propaganda everywhere they look, they are reminded of the strength of the regime.

The vast amount of resources authoritarians spend to display their message in every corner of the public square is a costly demonstration of their power /3

In fact, the overt silliness of authoritarian propaganda is part of the point. Propaganda is designed to be silly so that people can instantly recognize it when they see it


Propaganda is intended to instill fear in people, not brainwash them.

The message is: You might not believe in pro-regime values or attitudes. But we will make sure you are too frightened to do anything about it.

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