First off let me ask you to PLEASE not be offended by the titles smart and stupid. This post has serious content in it, but to a certain degree I am attempting humour.
Let me explain how this list came to be. I firmly believe that I am stupid, but none of my friends agree so I was initially going to write a joke post titled "How to Trick People into Thinking You are Smart." It was mostly tips for how to survive university, though, and as I was thinking about it I realised that "stupid people" actually get way more out of university than "smart people." So I wrote this instead.
1. Time management. Smart people have the privilege of being mentally capable of procrastination. A stupid person cannot punch out an award winning essay in one night no matter how many energy drinks they down. This may seem like a loss for stupid people, but they are learning how to manage their time and really, this is a lesson that everyone is going to need eventually.
2. Work ethic. This one is very similar to time management. A smart person can try only a little bit and spend most of their life flying by the seat of their pants. This makes things easier for them, at first, but employers and the such are really going to appreciate the work ethic that stupid people develop out of necessity.
3. Interdependence. Smart people have the ability to be independent. They can get through life relying on themselves in a way that stupid people just can't. In university, for example, a stupid person is going to need more than alcohol and caffeine. A stupid person will probably depend on their smarter friends, use the academic skill centre, even (GASP) actually attend their professor's office hours. Plus stupid people are going to need to learn how to reach out for emotional support because their inability to depend upon their own brain may lead to a lot of stress and anxiety.
4. Humility. Theoretically speaking, if you spend your life as the smartest in the room needing no one's help, it is probably going to be hard not to become arrogant. Whereas, if you spend your life staring your flaws in the face and admitting you need the help of other, smarter, people you are probably going to develop some super useful humility.
5. The importance of knowledge. Smart people can get by on intellect alone without needing to gain access to important knowledge. This one may apply to places other than university but it makes most sense in an academic context. The smart people look at the syllabus and think "Oh hey the essay and the exam are worth the most. I can ace the exam without studying and write a stellar essay in one night, so now all I have to do is come to a couple classes here and there to keep the prof off my case and I don't even have to do any readings I'll just throw in a couple comments based off the lecture to get participation marks." A stupid person, on the other hand, knows that no matter how hard they study or how much effort they put into the essay they are not guaranteed a good mark, so they have to do their best and try really hard in everything, which includes actually doing their readings. At first it may seem that the smart person has won because they do less work and get better grades, but the stupid person is actually gaining knowledge because of all the hard work they have to put into getting a passing grade.
6. The ability to learn and grow. A smart person can easily fall into the belief that there is nothing more for them to learn while a stupid person always knows that there is more.
