Smart vs. Intelligent

"You're so smart!" I got that a lot whenever I had really good grades in school and I hated it hearing it. To me getting good grades does not mean you're smart. It just means I was "smart" enough to turn in all my work in time, do all my homework, study for tests, do a lot of extra credit to make up for said tests that I did just average on, and never giving the teachers any trouble. Those five were all I needed to get an A in a class both in high school and college.

The whole "smart" thing? I really thought about it because I wanted to BE smart. I wanted to aspire to what people thought I was. I asked myself these questions: after getting straight A's, was I more intelligent? No. Did I understand everything I've learned when I got that A? No. So, I was NOT smart.

That really bothered me so I wikipedia'd the word "smart" and according to them "'intelligence' (as understanding) is arguably different from being 'smart' (able to adapt to one's environment)." The people giving me that compliment were right. Being smart means adapting to one's environment and that's just what I did: I figured out early and adapted to get that coveted A grade because getting A's meant good things will happen (and I liked good things). I was using the words "smart" and "intelligent" interchangeably! So that meant I WAS SMART! But does that mean I was not intelligent? Hmm...