How are you above and below average? List the ways.

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

What are you above average and below average at?

Just like the middle square on the bingo card, you get a freebie (actually you get two if you want them) since so many people want to claim them. You get to admit that you are above average at driving. You get to admit that you are below average on name recall.

I will start:

Above Average (AA):

  1. Researching decisions. I can make a $20 purchase an all-weekend research project. Pros/con lists. User ratings. Cost/benefit analysis. You can only imagine what I did before proposing to my wife. Marriage should not be an emotional decision!
  2. Technical stuff.
  3. FREEBIE: Driving. What is wrong with these people on the road?

Below Average (BA):

  1. Words. Words is real hard. And people learn more than one language?! I am still working on my first.
  2. Imagination: I got none. I can’t make up stories. As a child I didn’t color with crayons because I didn’t know what colors each thing should be. I hate art projects.
  3. FREEBIE: Remembering people’s name. Before visiting family, my wife and I go through my cousins’ names. But it is opposite of what it should be. She, who has only met them a few times, has to walk me through their names so I don’t embarrass myself.
#2

Hm. Well, let’s see, after some quick googling:

Above (US) average:

My salary is above the US average (especially for Hispanic males)
My IQ (which definitely tells one that I’m good at IQ tests) is above the US average
My freebie would be above average in handsomeness and charm :stuck_out_tongue:

Below (US) average:

Height…I’m 2 inches shorter than the national average
Grammar…I’m definitely below average in writing and spelling abilities
BMI…interestingly, I seem to be below the national average, which is surprising since I’m quite rotund IMHO
I’ll also cop to the last one on the OP. I’m terrible with remembering someone’s name. I usually just space out when folks are making introductions and such and I just have a hard time with names.

#3

Below average:
Modesty

Above average:
Everything else

#4

Statistical

Above average:
Weight I’m 5’11" and 200 lbs.
IQ 149
Salary 75k
Age 40
Amount of Sleep I get at night 8.5 hours

Below Average
Commute time 7.5 minutes
Exercise less than 1 time per week
Number of children 2

Opinions

Above average:
woodworker
chef
Angler

Below average:
Gardener
Housekeeper
Debater

I don’t know, I could probably go on. There’s a snapshot.

#5

Noting that this is about what we’re above average and below average at, which is to say skills, I’ll skip over things like intelligence, height, and weight(:().

Above average:
Computer programming. Given that the average is probably pretty close to “no skill at all”, it’s an easy one to clear, but even among actual programmers I consider myself pretty damned good.

That’s all I’ve got, really. I mean I’m a decent fiction writer with a couple of books on Amazon, but I have no reason to believe anyone else isn’t one. Honestly regarding pretty much anything I’m good at I have no reason to believe I’m better than others - except in programming.

Oh, and I’m an average driver.

Below average:
Cooking. Even if the average was “no skill at all”, I’d still be below average. I’m an active hazard in the kitchen.

Navigation. I’m remarkably terrible at navigation, sufficiently so I can get lost with a map and directions. If I don’t have the route memorized at an instinctive level I go off-track five times out of ten. If I do have it instinctively memorized I still mess up one out of ten. If everyone was as bad as me society would have collapsed by now.

I also suck at singing, dancing, cleaning, socializing, sports, competitive board games, first person shooters, ect, ect, ect -but again I don’t know that I’m worse than others so I can’t properly list them here. Okay I did list them, but they don’t really count.

Oh, and I’m extremely terrible at names, but that’s the freebie.

#6

Above average: researching, singing, playing guitar, physical condition

Below average: mechanical ability, reading nonverbal signals, math from algebra on up (I’m probably above average at doing computations in my head), making romantic connections (with one notable exception).

#7

Below average bullshit tolerance.

But I have prehensile toes.:slight_smile:

#8

Circus toes unite! Long may we pinch people over 3 feet from us.

I’m above average in growing food I consume - several pounds a week.
I’m below average in siblings; I have a brother and that’s it.

#9

At 70 years old I am not above average in as many things as I was when I was younger so I will refer back to when I was younger. Physical strength and speed in most areas I was in the 99th percentile. After completing these tests in high school I was told that I broke some national records and that I was extremely high in all areas. I have no formal education but I am good at basic math and formulating work problems that seem to leave my much more educated friends baffled. I am good at putting jobs together both large and small with a good degree of accuracy. I have recently discovered I have a bit of a knack for philosophy.

Below average in physically organizing things, I have learned to depend on friends help when reworking my work space plans, once the plans are down I can execute with no problem. I am below average in language skills and expressing ideas. As much as I hate to admit it I believe I am a below average lover, I have learned ways to compensate for this however.

#10

Above average: Speller. Squanderer of vast resources, enemy of self, booty lover, speed and suddenness of temper escalations, source of discomfort for many.

Below average: in total distance between the top of my head and the ground beneath me. Rollerskater. Iyengar yoga instructor. Heterosexual porn star who is able to also “perform” on camera with gay male pornstars (ass 4 cash).

#11

You do all these things, just not very well?

#12

AA- Mom, Nana, pet owner (in numbers, they own me), Artist (debatable), I am the most excellent packer and cleaner. Got a closet? Call me!:slight_smile:
BA- cook, driver, keeping my phone near my person ( It’s lost now), wakefulness in the morning, sleeper, shopper.

#13

Above average - weight, IQ

Below average- earnings for someone with a master’s degree, amount of times having sex per year

#14

Yes sir.

#15

AA: Brevity

#16

Oh boy, sleep! That’s where I’m a Viking!

#17

Above: Crossword puzzles and word games, trivia knowledge, dog owner, organization
Below: Socializing (mingling at parties, etc), navigation/sense of direction, finances, arts & crafts

#18

Interviewing for jobs. I am extremely good at this. Never had a first interview where I didn’t go on to the 2nd interview. Even in my 20s, I interviewed for a part-time position at a fine-dining restaurant. Manager said “I don’t hire anybody except those who want to serve (wait tables) full-time. It’s an honor being hired here and I only want professionals.” 30 minutes later, he offered me the job.

Crisis management. If a problem occurs, I’m on it and will solve it.

#19

Above average:
Cook
Photographer
Language ability (as tested)
Retirement income (per AARP, the median is $25K; I’m at $105K for the two of us)
When working: personnel management and problem solving
Fixing things

Below average:
Sense of direction; can’t find my ass with both hands and a search party.

#20

Below Average:

  1. I can’t remember names or recognize faces very well. Never have been able to, and that has made me somewhat of an introvert as a result.

  2. I was never good at math. I am a lot better than when I was in school, but I still rely on a calculator more than most people.

  3. I’m not nearly as smart as some people. I can do okay with trivia, and I am pretty good at Jeopardy, but overall I don’t know as much about a single subject as most people I know do. I’m a “jack of all trades” kind of thinker…

Above Average:

  1. I show up on time, or preferably a few minutes early, to everything, always. I value people’s time and don’t like it when someone has to wait for me.

  2. I’m good with money. I have been investing wisely for over 30 years and my wife and I have a comfortable nest egg to retire on. I thought by now Social Security would be bankrupt and I never wanted to be dependent on my kids, so being financially secure was something that was always important to me, and I was always able to keep down a good job. I also took some financial risks along the way that mostly paid off, and that didn’t hurt.

  3. I am a man of my word. If I say I am going to do something I always do it, no ifs, ands or buts. By default I expect everyone to keep their promises, and I am often disappointed.

  4. I can keep a confidence. Need to tell someone a secret that can’t be shared with anyone else? I’m your man.

  5. I respect other people’s POV. I don’t judge people who are different than me. I don’t care what your religion is, or your political affiliation, or how you raise your kids. That’s none of my business, and even if I knew I wouldn’t care. Live and let live is my motto.