How to Develop a Curious Mindset
Hi team,
Welcome to our weekly newsletter!
Building on a subject mentioned in last week’s newsletter around perfectionism, one of the points discussed was around remaining open to new experiences. Since the release, we have had more and more reminders of the need to stay curious as we try to grow and improve our productivity. We were even reminded of a famous Henry Miller quote; “One's destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” It then dawned on us that it is a category which deserves its own write-up.
Curiosity is termed as the desire to know or learn something and having a curious mind is associated with intelligence, creativity and problem-solving. It may seem straightforward to consider curiosity as the moment that your interest in a topic is piqued, but we believe that a curious mindset is also someone who is willing to further expand their mind.
There are many ways to develop a curious mindset and below we have outlined four methods we use to constantly develop a curious mindset:
Read
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies… The man who never reads lives only one.” – George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons
The above quote summarises how reading is a doorway to a curious mindset. We want to develop the ability to consider alternative perspectives to our own and reading provides to opportunity to do this. The trick with reading is to push yourself to explore new genres and books, so that you are not limiting yourself to similar experiences. Fiction and non-fiction can both be ways to learn new perspectives, so there is no need to feel that you have to delve into the non-fiction market only.
In the weeks ahead, we will delve more into the subject of reading, but if you are someone that struggles with finding the time to read then the key is making this a habit. The best way we have found to make reading a habit was to link reading to a regular action you do every day. For some this might be reading with a meal, or on the commute to work, and the other common time would be before sleeping. Knowing this action is something you will do every day and linking it to reading, provides the time for reading to become a habit. If you’re not a regular reader, start small and build-up over time, enjoying the new perspectives you will gain.
Say Yes to More Opportunities
A sure-fire way to develop a curious mindset is to say yes to more opportunities. This also plays into your ability to push yourself out of your comfort zone and attempt new skills or experiences.
We like to think of the Jim Carrey movie “Yes Man”, which was a plot based on someone who says “No” to everything and then goes through a period of having to say “Yes” to everything. Whilst the plot is built towards creating something worthy of a movie storyline, the principle of someone’s experiences being opened once they begin to say yes, is a very apt approach to developing your curious mindset.
Being realistic, saying yes to everything that comes up may not be possible or healthy for you. But in the weeks ahead, we highly recommend that when an opportunity to experience something new does arise, you consider the option of saying yes. Then with each new experience, try to review whether you felt enjoyment, challenged and/or saw a new perspective. With some items, once may be enough, but depending on what it is that you have taken part in, you may find a new ongoing habit or activity that provides enjoyment to you.
Be Open to Autonomy
Autonomy increases curiosity and it is for this reason that we must promote it to develop our curious mindset. Being granted the freedom to explore new experiences should never be taken for granted and whether that is at work, or within your personal life, we should be looking for the chance to provide ourselves with as much autonomy as possible. Admittedly, depending on your position at work, your level of autonomy may not be in your own hands, yet it is our hope that in reading this newsletter there are opportunities to explore new ways of looking at the world which are not impeded by the views or opinions of others. If you do find that you are constantly provided with someone else’s views before your own, then consider ways to remove this. The first step is picking something new to explore and map out the steps to delve into that subject or activity, with full autonomy.
When you Find Something You Love, Dig In
When you are developing a curious mindset, there is a risk of constantly trying to push yourself and make new experiences, without remembering to actually be open to a new activity becoming a habit. What we mean by this is that if you stumble upon something that truly provides you with joy or is simply something you want to learn more about, it is okay to pause and dive further into this area of exploration. Just because you may go into detail on one particular topic, does not mean you are not remaining curious or that you cannot look at further experiences in the future. Be grateful for this new addition to your life and enjoy every moment you have in the enjoyment stage.
We hope that in the week ahead these points will support you as you go about developing a curious mindset. Go well and wishing you all well!
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