re: Is it possible to be intelligent AND poor?

There are plenty of stupid people who are well-off or at least middle class so why not?

I’t raw intelligence as less important than other things like esteem, emotional intelligence, depression, etc.

Lot of ways it can happen.

Serious physical or mental health issues, and you can't hold a job or run a business long enough to convert your brains into money.

Book smart but no common sense.

Take high risk/high reward gambles that don't work.

Be an ascetic.

I'm a janitor but I can solve complex theoretical mathematics equations in my head that esteemed professors cannot solve at all. I can also read books on advanced topics in a night and retain all the information.

I just had a rough childhood growing up in the foster system.

College faculties are filthy with smart poor people.