Practical intelligence hacks: 6 simple ways to sharpen your real-world thinking

Imagine you’re traveling in a country where you don’t speak the language. You’re lost. You’re tired. And, not to add salt to the wound, but your phone’s completely dead.

What do you do? Resign yourself to fate and start mentally drafting your Lost Abroad memoir? Or channel your inner MacGyver and start problem-solving?

Someone with practical intelligence would do the latter—by observing their surroundings, looking for familiar landmarks, maybe finding a local who seems approachable, and us...