Why A Curious Mind Is One of Your Most Powerful Assets

Curiosity is the desire to know something more than you do right now. When it's felt strongly, it can be one of the most inspiring and innovative forces in your life. 

While some people dive headlong into rabbit holes looking for answers and researching topics, others shy away from curiosity because they're either too busy trying to survive or have a naturally risk-averse personality. 

Since knowledge is one of my core values, I can't imagine a reality where my curiosity wasn't indulged or explored every day. However, sometimes I wonder, "Am I pursuing it enough?"

What happens when you underutilize or ignore curiosity?

Whenever I have a client who is feeling depressed or stuck, one of the things I ask them to do is to re-engage with their curiosity. Why? Because it's a stepping-stone to expanding beyond the limits of your current situation or reality. 

It's easy to get caught up in the daily grind and lose your sense of happiness and purpose. Thinking about and pursuing activities that brought you joy in the past can help you reignite your spark in the present. 

I also recommend exploring something you've always wanted to try, but never had the time, money, energy, or support to pursue in the past. The fact that you were once curious is like leaving a trail of breadcrumbs for your future self to follow. 

Even if you're not in a position to throw caution to the wind and fully immerse yourself, then even reading about a former passion, exploring it locally, or taking baby step action to bring it back into your life is still forward movement. 

Your growth can plateau.

In life and in business, a curious mind is one of your most powerful assets. Without it, you may find it difficult to go beyond the borders of your own mind and your growth can stagnate.

Curiosity provides you with the opportunity to expose yourself to higher levels of excellence. When you seek to learn more about yourself or a topic, then you're opening the door to a new life. 

When you're reaching a plateau, your life begins to feel boring. The same thing happens over and over again, and this is where people begin to feel restless, unhappy, and depressed. 

Your brain is wired to seek new experiences for optimal functioning. In fact, your brain has a self-pruning mechanism that's designed to delete information that you're no longer using. Brain health is directly linked to new information. For this reason, puzzles, learning new skills, information, and languages are recommended to keep you mentally sharp as you age. 

Curiosity leads to creativity and innovation.

When you're able to let your mind wander and ask questions like "What if?", "Could I?", and "Why?", then multiple possibilities can open for you. These questions engage your subconscious brain to find a creative solution whereas asking "How" can stifle creativity and cause frustration because your logical brain doesn't immediately have an answer. 

Asking new questions, considering multiple viewpoints from valued members of your team, and allowing yourself to go beyond current solutions to problems is how innovation changes the world. 

It takes courage to go beyond accepted limits and take a risk with a new idea or innovation. Curiosity can also help you keep refining during the natural trial and error implementation process associated with innovation. 

Your social life may improve.

Not only is curiosity good for you mental and emotional health, but your social life can improve as well. 

When you allow your curiosity to lead you to new activities, groups, or individuals, then you may discover allies who can help you with your innovative projects or with finding your purpose and passion in life. 

I know several people who have even met a romantic partner by trying new activities that interested them or were out of their current comfort zone. 

Improving the quality of your relationships and expanding your professional and social network can be an important step for your future. Curiosity could be the key to opening doors that lead to your ideal life!

 "I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious."  -Albert Einstein

Dr. April Darley is a Lifestyle and Leadership Advisor who specializes in helping innovative thinkers achieve their goals without sacrificing their health, wealth, and freedom. Through a combination of techniques, you'll learn how to balance leadership and life while developing a growth mindset.

To schedule your complimentary consultation, click HERE.