Community Connection ~ October 26, 2025: Become More "People Smart"

After a hiatus to share some fantastic All About Me Bags, this week we return to our series centered around Thomas Armstrong’s book 7 Kinds of Smart. We have been diving into the theory of multiple intelligences, spending a Sunday exploring each of the ways our beautifully unique brains are capable of knowing things. Today’s focus: “People Smart.” 

“People Smart” is another word for interpersonal intelligence; simply, your ability to understand and relate effectively to other people. Luckily, as with the other types of intelligence we’ve discussed, while some people possess a more innately well-tuned social antenna, there are ways to strengthen your skills if they don’t come easy to you. 

One way to start working on your interpersonal intelligence is to refine your “cognitive maps” around individuals and groups. These are the frameworks that guide our understanding of and attitude towards the people around us. This does include things we observe about others - how they are dressed, their behavior, the way in which they interact with other people and the world around them - but there are also assumptions and societal stereotypes and personal blind spots baked into how we interpret what we observe, many of which we are not even aware of. The best way to refine your maps is to practice! Go somewhere with lots of people around, choose someone to observe, and then review your impressions of that person and divide them into two groups: impressions based on evidence and impressions supported more by assumption than evidence. If it helps you to write down your impressions, do it (in the most subtle and non-creepy way you can). As you repeat this exercise, Armstrong suggests you’ll learn a great deal about both individuals and “the complex web of social interactions.” 

The path towards becoming more “people smart” also involves leaning into what researchers call “we culture” - a culture that values connection and collaboration over individual achievement. In order to relate effectively to other people, it helps to acknowledge that we are stronger and more productive when we work together. While “I culture” is often in evidence around us, the Desert Mission community is a beautiful example of a “we culture” nested within its surroundings, and as a member of that community, you have lots of opportunities to lean into it. Consider volunteering to serve on a Sunday, or becoming an active member of a Missions team, or attending a class, group, or social outing. There is tons of information about these things in our weekly newsletter, in the announcement slides shown before the Sunday service, and on the last page of the Sunday service bulletin. Not only will you have fun, make friends, and improve the world around you...you’ll also become smarter! 

What is your favorite way to contribute to Desert Mission’s “we culture”? Share with us on Facebook or Instagram!