From a scale of 1 up to 10, how forgetful are you?

For the most part, being forgetful goes hand in hand with a lack of intelligence. At least that's what film and TV personalities generally try to tell us.

While others may have good memories, don't consider yourself dumb for not being one of them. And scientists will tell you why.

A study conducted by the University of Toronto claims that having a strong memory is, in fact, an overrated asset. Scientists have concluded that having a bad memory could be a good thing.

Of course, forgetting essential things from time to time is overwhelming, but this could confirm increased intelligence.

Professor Blake Richards, one of the publishers of the study, said:

"It's important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on the stuff that's going to help make decisions in the real world."

"We know that exercise increases the number of neurons in the hippocampus, but they're exactly those details from your life that don't actually matter, and that may be keeping you from making good decisions."

According to the researcher, memory utilizes optimum decision making by retaining valuable information and letting go of unimportant stuff. It's essentially making room for the things that matter.

Richards added that when someone is trying to live their lives, the "brain is constantly bringing up multiple conflicting memories that make it harder for you to make an informed decision."

According to the professor, what information is discarded depends on the situation:

"One of the things that distinguish an environment where you're going to want to remember stuff versus an environment where you want to forget stuff is this question of how consistent the environment is and how likely things are to come back into your life."

If your brain forgets specific details about a particular event, yet you still remember the larger picture, scientists believe that this allows you to generalize previous experiences better instead of someone who can remember every minute detail of the event.

This is possible because you've more decisively important things on your mind.

So stop putting yourself down over all those little things that escape your brain. Instead, consider yourself an intelligent person who has more important things to think about.