Jumpstart Your Curiosity

In the spirit of full disclosure, I haven’t always been a curious fellow.

Curiosity arrived later in life for me . . . and boy, was it worth the wait.

For a long time, what kept curiosity at a distance was pretty simple: I thought I knew everything I needed to know.

I was a quiet know-it-all.

And then, somewhere along the way, this simple thought dawned on me:

Not knowing is your passport to knowing.

Think about that for a moment.

Knowing can actually stop you at the border.

Not knowing gets you through customs.

Because when you think you already know, there’s really nothing left to explore. Certainty closes the door. Not knowing opens it.

And that’s when curiosity gets involved.

Not knowing engages your curiosity. Certainty can stop it dead in its tracks.

So, let me give you a little experiment you can try.

Take some everyday activity that you normally do without giving it a second thought . . . and the next time you do it, pay close attention.

For example, the next time you reach for a doorknob, pause for a second.

Instead of thinking, I know what this is and how it works, approach it from the position of not knowing.

How does this thing actually work?

What makes it turn?

What happens inside that little mechanism when I push the door open?

You might be surprised at what happens next.

You start looking.

You start wondering.

You start noticing things you normally overlook.

In other words, your curiosity kicks in.

Not knowing gives curiosity a kick in the pants.

And that was a revelation for me.

Curiosity puts juice into your life.

It makes ordinary things interesting again.

Certainty, on the other hand, can leave your curiosity sitting on the shelf . . . right alongside all the nourishment and joy that curiosity can bring.

And this isn't just about doorknobs.

You can approach life this way.

You can approach people this way.

Think about what happens when you meet someone and assume you already know what they're going to say, what they believe, or why they're doing what they're doing.

There isn't much room left for curiosity.

But when you approach someone from the position of I don't know, something changes.

You listen differently.

You notice more.

And you may discover that the person in front of you is considerably more interesting than the version of them you had already created in your head.

Curiosity has a way of removing the smugness that can come with certainty . . . and that smugness can be a pretty effective barrier to communication.

So maybe give yourself permission to not know.

Not knowing isn't a deficiency.

It may actually be the doorway.

Allow yourself the freedom to question what you think you know . . . to look again . . . to wonder . . . to explore.

And don't be too surprised if, along the way, you find yourself growing.

And, as a rather nice bonus . . .

You may find yourself becoming a whole lot more in the know.

All the best,

John