How to Spot a Fool

Fools are all around. They are many.

In fact, there is possibly a fool either reading or writing this blog. Either one is possible.

What is a fool? Glad you asked.

Any one can simply be “not smart.” In fact, I, myself, have been accused of being “not smart.” But a fool is different. Fools are often semi-functional, but their foolishness impedes the work or progress of others.

In the not-too-distant past, I worked with someone who I thought could be a fool. I wasn’t sure, so I had to ask a couple of people I knew to be smart if he was a fool.

Turns out, he was.

But the incident taught me that I need to be better at spotting fools. Here is a handy three-step guide that you, too, can use to spot people who are fools.

1.) Fools are completely convinced they are the smartest people in the room.
One of the easiest ways to spot a fool is that they carry themselves in a manner to suggest that they are smarter than you, although there is no additional evidence to support that belief. If a person isn’t smart enough to carry him or herself with humility and treat other people respectfully, watch out. You may be dealing with a fool.

2.) Loud, obnoxious behavior.
Fools often announce their presence with behavior that causes their foolishness to stand out. They often choose to express themselves loudly or in a manner that attracts undue attention. Foolish non-verbal self-expression can come in the form of tattoos, body piercing, and unnaturally colored hair. This is not to say that all people who engage in such activities are fools.

3.) Obsession with pop culture.
Fools often don’t know very much, thereby making them fools. But what they do know is who got voted off the island, the identity of the latest American Idol, and which celebrities are dating each other. It perhaps might be that the pop culture information filling their heads leaves no room for little else.