The Curious Benefits of Curiosity

I have long believed that curiosity is a key ingredient in the making of a successful career.  I have a burning curiosity about what makes people tick and in particular what makes certain people so much more successful than others. I’m less curious about what makes storm clouds form on sunny afternoon or how a combustion engine works. I suppose it’s that way for everyone, we all have our own particular brand of curiosity.  I was intrigued when I read a blog by Warren Berger titled 3 Ways Embracing Curiosity Can Change Your Life. 

Berger quotes famous folks from Albert Einstein to Walt Disney who identify curiosity as a driver of their own success.  Berger believes that it is curiosity that is “the most valuable asset” of entrepreneurs as it drives both our progress and creativity as a society, attributing curiosity with some of the most significant breakthroughs in innovation.

Curiosity and Relationships

I consider the impact of curiosity on our relationships to be equally important. Developing a focus on understanding others can deepen our relationships; Here’s how:

• Curiosity and our use of effective questioning allows us to better understand one another. 
•  The exercise of asking questions and adding to our mental information bank is essential in broadening our perspectives.
•  It is both flattering and esteem-building when someone demonstrates genuine interest in who we are and what we think.

In these ways, the expression of our personal curiosity can be enriching for our both communication skills and our relationships.

The Watch Out

Because there is such a wealth of information literally at our fingertips, we need to manage our curiosity.  Berger suggests that the most successful innovators are the ones who know how to “narrow their focus, channeling their curiosity in a particularly promising direction.”

Like Berger, I believe that we can use curiosity as a self-motivating force, providing a wealth of inspiration and a wellspring of new ideas. In order to nourish your curiosity you need to start with an open mind, and effectively manage both internal and external distractions:

•  Stop and pay attention, take the time to “notice”.
•  Deliberately manage your judgments and translate any particular reaction to one of interest.
•  Ask a question, seek to understand.
• Consider how the new information relates to your prior assumptions.
•  Looking forward, what does this new information might mean to your opinions and perspective?

I hope that I am never done learning, and I enjoy being wrong a lot more than I used to.  After all, every time I am wrong today it allows me to be more right tomorrow than I was yesterday!

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