The Art of Curiosity

Curiosity killed the cat… You are not a cat.

I came across an amazing story recently about a young man from Malawi who asked “what if?”. His village was suffering from years of drought and poor crops. Rather than watch and do nothing, he studied. His curiosity and drive led him to learn how to build a windmill. With that windmill he learned how to power an irrigation system. With that irrigation system he brought water back to his village, the crops grew and he fed his community. All because he got curious.

So, what do you want to change in your life?

Whatever you want, I urge you to ask “What if?”.

You could just live today like yesterday — do the same things you do every day.

But instead, I challenge you to make one little change, to do one little thing that is bold and new.

Here’s a neat trick. Next time that you catch yourself thinking “I wonder”… grab that sucker of a thought! There’s your cue. Go find out and get curious. Same thing if you catch yourself thinking “I wish…”.

Often, the best things happen when you say “Screw the rules, I'm doing that! What the hell, I’ll do it anyway”.

When I was studying for my MA in English Literature I found myself one day on a cold January in Leeds with an airline ticket to Australia in my hand. I had been planning to spend the following summer in Thailand with a friend and, for reasons unknown, Quantas Airlines were peddling tickets to Sydney via Bangkok that were cheaper than any airline that was offering direct flights to Thailand.

I had two choices:

1. Spend the summer in Thailand and go back to university in September to finish my Masters (not exactly a bad option…)
2. Ask the faculty if I could defer the final year of my degree, travel on to Australia from South East Asia and backpack for a year.

And so, totally unplanned, “what if” took me on a year of adventure and exploration that started a life long wanderlust in me.

It doesn't have to be these big things, mind you. “What if” can be as simple as saying “hi” to that beautiful stranger, reading the book that catches your eye, putting out that great idea at work or visiting that place you have never been.

So, whatever makes you ponder; whatever your itch is… go scratch it. Let the magic happen.

And remember…

You are not a cat.

I hang out with ambitious and creative people who want to escape the corporate cage and create a life they love. I am also running personal branding workshops to teach you how to create your unique personal brand in just one day. Subscribe to Get Unchained to receive my free career change mini ebook and find details of courses and workshops.

Follow me on twitter @getunchained & subscribe to my weekly newsletter at www.get-unchained.com