The Case For Curiosity
Photo by Gary Butterfield on Unsplash
There’s a quote attributed to the Portuguese writer, Saramego, that says, “old age starts where curiosity ends”.
When we’re young, we’re ‘naturally’ curious. We’re willing to try new things, take new paths and push ourselves (often to the point of discomfort). When we’re old, according to conventional wisdom, we seek comfort and contentment. We seek safety, and are willing to trade excitement - indeed, believe we’re required to trade it - in return.
Except, I don’t believe this is how life really works. Not a life of meaning, of passion anyway.
I think “life”, in the true sense - the visceral, emotional, driven sense - demands continuous, relentless and aggressive curiosity. It demands an openness to ideas and a desire for innovation. It demands personal risk which, by definition, means a level of personal and professional exposure.
As we get older, though, many of us lose this sense, or at least we trade it off. We value the perceived certainty and comfort of what we know. We’re unwilling to put ourselves out there for fear of censure (explicit or implicit). In a practical sense, we don’t want to lose whatever we’ve gained, tangible or intangible.
Thing is, this is the price of a life worth living.
The issue is one of mindset, and not age. Certainly, the vagaries of life can take their toll, but our core value set - how we choose to think, act and behave - are the dominant influences. (Which is why we see teenagers who aren’t willing to push their boundaries and, at the same time, septuagenarians who aren’t willing to “act their age”.)
The answer, at least to me, lies in a quote by envelope maker turned bestselling author, Harvey Mackay: You’re better off being scared than bored. And curiosity is central to this.
We need to adopt a curious mindset, one where we’re willing to try, where we’re willing to be scared, where we’re willing to put ourselves out there. I don’t necessarily mean major risks where we put everything on the line (though sometimes that’s needed), but even small steps matter. What does that mean?
Get curious professionally. Find the bleeding edge of your profession and absorb what it means for you. Apply some element of that to how you do things in your role today. If it feels comfortable, ask yourself if it can be improved. Faced with the choice between the tried and tested and the bold and innovative, opt for the latter.
As important, get curious personally. Find a subject you know nothing about and dive into it. Take up a hobby you’ve always admired but never tried: start painting, learn an instrument, sign up for a half marathon. Take a different route to work. Get uncomfortable doing things that force you to confront your world view.
The point is, Curiosity is an essential mindset. It determines how we’re wired and therefore how we act. In that sense, it’s our lifeblood, the ultimate source of our personal and professional vitality. As such, in ways large and small, curiosity must become a way of life.
