You probably think you’re pretty smart. Most people believe they’re smarter than the average American, according to a study from YouGov. Yet when it comes to IQ, most of us are indeed average, falling in the 80-119 point range. While this number peaks in our late teens to early 20s and remains relatively stable as we age, that doesn’t mean your potential is fixed.

“The fact is, intelligence can be increased–and quite dramatically,” writes behavior-analytic psychologist Bryan Roche of the National University of Ireland in Psychology Today. “Those who claim that IQ is fixed for life are in fact referring to our IQ test scores, which are relatively stable–not to our intelligence levels, which are constantly increasing.”

Anyone has the potential for genius or, at the very least, greatness. The key is to let go of the myth that giftedness is innate.

David Shenk, author of The Genius in All of Us, says it’s virtually impossible to determine any individual’s true intellectual limitations at any age; anyone has the potential for genius or, at the very least, greatness. The key is to let go of the myth that giftedness is innate.

“A belief in inborn gifts and limits is much gentler on the psyche: The reason you aren’t a great opera singer is because you can’t be one. That’s simply the way you were wired. Thinking of talent as innate makes our world more manageable, more comfortable. It relieves a person of the burden of expectation,” he writes in his book.

If you want to be smarter than the average American, it’s not only possible; it’s within reach. Intelligence is the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills, and includes the ability to reason, solve problems, remember information, and be creative. Increasing your intelligence–even taking yours to genius status–takes a willingness to do the work.

While taking a class and reading a book are two ways to learn something new, here are six surprising tasks that boost your brainpower, make learning easier, and put you on the road to greatness:

While a professor at the University of California, Irvine, Susanne Jaeggi found that an activity known as the n-back task increases fluid intelligence, which is the ability to reason and solve new problems independent of previous knowledge. The n-back game challenges participants to keep track of spoken words or locations on a grid, and identify when a letter or grid location is repeated. N-back training, which is available for free online, can help improve memory and problem-solving skills.