--- title: How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts description: Work hard because of passion, not money canonical: https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-02T04:01:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:49:32.328Z article:section: Ideas og:title: How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts og:description: Work hard because of passion, not money og:url: https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta7cf50117ec9b4d6/69885944e53abad70c4de6e7/boy-einstein-genius-wig.jpg?branch=production&width=507&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 507 og:image:height: 285 og:image:alt: boy-einstein-genius-wig og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts twitter:description: Work hard because of passion, not money twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta7cf50117ec9b4d6/69885944e53abad70c4de6e7/boy-einstein-genius-wig.jpg?branch=production&width=507&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts > Sponsored content. 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Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ## Video: Benedict Cumberbatch: On Playing the Role of the Genius [Watch (HLS stream): Benedict Cumberbatch: On Playing the Role of the Genius](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/eCsfiaxR.m3u8) (1:39)  _Published 2014-11-19. Benedict Cumberbatch talks to TIME about the challenges of taking on the role of a genius in his portrayal of Alan Turing_ by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Jul 2, 2015 4:01 AM UTC  Little Genius Little GeniusGetty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Jul 2, 2015 4:01 AM UTC Want to know how to be a genius? There are five things you can learn from looking at those who are the very best. ## **1) Be Curious And Driven** For his book [Creativity](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060928204/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0060928204&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20), noted professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi did interviews with 91 groundbreaking individuals across a number of disciplines, including 14 Nobel Prize winners. In [50 Psychology Classics](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1857883861/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1857883861&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20) Tom Butler-Bowdon [summed up](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/10/what-does-the-most-comprehensive-study-of-gen/) many of Csikszentmihalyi’s findings including this one: --- > “” --- ## 2) It’s Not About Formal Education. It’s Hours At Your Craft. Do you need a [sky-high IQ](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/10/smartest-man-world/)? Do great geniuses all have PhD’s? Nope. Most had about a college-dropout level of education. Via [Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591842948/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1591842948): --- > “” --- But they all [work their butts off](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/05/genius-work-habits/) in their field of expertise. That’s how to be a genius. Those interested in the [10,000-hour theory](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/05/is-it-true-that-10000-hours-of-practice-will/) of [deliberate practice](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/08/what-does-it-take-to-become-an-expert-at-anyt/) won’t be surprised. As detailed in [Daily Rituals: How Artists Work](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307273601/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307273601&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20), the vast majority of them are workaholics. Via [Daily Rituals: How Artists Work](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307273601/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307273601&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20) --- > “” --- In fact, you really can’t work too much. Via [Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591842948/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1591842948): --- > “” --- ## 3) Test Your Ideas Howard Gardner studied geniuses like Picasso, Freud and Stravinsky and found a similar pattern of analyzing, testing and feedback used by all of them: Via [Creating Minds: An Anatomy of Creativity Seen Through the Lives of Freud, Einstein, Picasso, Stravinsky, Eliot, Graham, and Ghandi](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0465027741/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0465027741): --- > “” --- Does testing sound like something scientific and uncreative? Wrong. The more creative an artist is the more likely they are to use this method: Via [Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1439170428/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1439170428&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20) --- > “” --- ## **4) You Must Sacrifice** 10,000 hours is a hell of a lot of hours. It means many other things (some important) will need to be ignored. In fact, geniuses are notably less likely to be popular in high school. Why? The [deliberate](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-type-of-practice-produces-peak-performan) [practice](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-it-true-that-10000-hours-of-practice-will) that will one day make them famous alienates them from their peers in adolesence. Via [Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307352145/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307352145&linkCode=as2&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- At the extremes, the amount of practice and devotion required can pass into the realm of the pathological. If hours alone determine genius then it is inevitable that reaching the greatest heights will require, quite literally, obsession. Via [Creating Minds: An Anatomy of Creativity Seen Through the Lives of Freud, Einstein, Picasso, Stravinsky, Eliot, Graham, and Ghandi](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0465027741/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0465027741): --- > “” --- ## **5) Work because of passion, not money** Passion produces better art than desire for financial gain — and that leads to more success in the long run. Via Dan Pink’s [Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594484805/ref=as%5Fli%5Fss%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=spacforrent-20): --- > “” --- **Join over 190,000 readers. Get a free weekly update via email** [**here**](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD)**.** **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/05/how-to-be-a-genius/)**_._** Related posts: [How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/how-to-stop-being-lazy/) [How To Get People To Like You: 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior Expert](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/10/how-to-get-people-to-like-you/) [New Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More Successful](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/"},"headline":"How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts","datePublished":"2015-07-02T04:01:35.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:49:32.328Z","description":"Work hard because of passion, not money","url":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/","keywords":["Psychology","Workplace","career","genius","IQ"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta7cf50117ec9b4d6/69885944e53abad70c4de6e7/boy-einstein-genius-wig.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eric Barker","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eric-barker/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta7cf50117ec9b4d6/69885944e53abad70c4de6e7/boy-einstein-genius-wig.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"boy-einstein-genius-wig","caption":"boy-einstein-genius-wig","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/","name":"How to Be a Genius: 5 Secrets From Experts"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Benedict Cumberbatch: On Playing the Role of the Genius","description":"Benedict Cumberbatch talks to TIME about the challenges of taking on the role of a genius in his portrayal of Alan Turing","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/eCsfiaxR/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-11-19T22:41:55.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/eCsfiaxR.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/","duration":"PT1M39S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3943174/genius-expert-secrets/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```