As a life coach I often am reminded by clients about how they remember being curious as children. They remember the awe and wonder, the curiosity, that made learning fun. They also notice how as adults they have lost their curiosity. It is time to bring it back. Here are 5 great reasons to- Be Curious!
1. Curiosity creates action.
Curiosity is an underutilized super power. Curiosity will propel you to take action. It will release inner tension and turmoil. It will put you back in the driver’s seat of your own emotions. Think about it for a moment. Curiosity forces us to say “oh gosh I don’t know”. This is huge. Humbling yourself enough, slowing down enough to become curious neutralizes whatever is driving you. Maybe it is fear. Let’s say you want to change jobs and you are in fear. A simple switch from fear to curiosity makes it possible for you to make choices, investigate alternatives, move forward.
2. There is no right or wrong when you are curious.
Curiosity is a judgment free zone. There is no way to be judging your action or the actions of others when you are curious. Curiousness is inquisitive and exploratory. There is no such thing as perfect, right or wrong when you are being curious. This creates momentum because when you are curious there are endless possibilities. Without curiosity there is a stopping energy because without curiosity we are vulnerable to limiting beliefs.
3. Curiosity releases uncertainty.
Practicing curiosity you release uncertainty. Instead of getting frustrated with inaction you question yourself. Let’s say you have skipped the gym this week and are feeling tired and upset with yourself. Typical response might be “I should have gone to the gym, but I did not.” This leaves you feeling unaccomplished, like a failure. It’s even more challenging to then motivate “yourself-the failure” to go to the gym. Changing your response to curious makes it easier. You say to yourself “hmm, could I have gone to the gym?”. Perhaps the answer is really no, the timing was not there this week, or perhaps you see alternatives. Curiosity leaves the possibilities open, open to go the gym in the future. Creating an exploratory curious sense inherently gives you the feeling of possible reward, that feels good and motivates action.
4. Curiosity makes you smarter.
The scientific study, Neuron, Gruber et al.: States of curiosity modulate hippocampus-dependent learning via the dopaminergic circuit, studied curiosity and found that indeed curiosity makes you smarter. This study found that when people are curious about a topic they are better at learning about it. They also found that curiosity increase the reward circuits and stimulated activity in the hippocampus a part of the brain that forms new memories. This has implications for individuals who are looking to increase their productivity and individuals with neurological conditions for healing.
5. Either way if you have all the answers, or do not, curiosity helps.
Whether you have the answers, or you don’t, stay curious. If you believe you have the answers curiosity will help you dive even deeper into your passions. Remember getting too comfortable is not always a good thing. Curiosity will invite you to think outside of the box into new frontiers. And, if you do not feel you have the answers, if you are stuck, curiosity will invite you look at the world with an organic optimism. This generates opportunities and an overall sense of wellbeing.
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