What else might I do? vs. How might I have more impact?

I’m curious.

Nothing excites me more than learning something new — exposure to different concepts, frameworks, ideas, ways of thinking, ways of working, ways of communicating. I spend most of my free time exploring—soaking in the serendipity of never-ending streams of links, stories, blogs, videos, interviews, podcasts (thank you, Twitter/FB/LinkedIn/Medium).

The challenge, though, especially in my role at a growing company: there is no shortage of processes to improve, projects to start, ideas to test. This is both a blessing (what an amazing environment) and a curse. Why a curse? In my first 9 months, I’ve spent too much time answering the wrong question. Too often, in a search for knowledge and information, I’ve asked myself 1) What else might I do? instead of 2) How might I have more impact?

The first question has taken me far and wide (sometimes due to my own curiosity and interest in new experiences; other times due to a demand for my experiences or skill set). I’ve undoubtedly made an impact chasing the first question.

But might my efforts have more impact (on my colleagues and our mission) if I went deeper in fewer areas—and spent more time focused on the second question? In a hyper-growth environment, especially, we should focus on the ‘impact’ question. Amazing as it seems, the possibilities might be too endless.

A personal goal for the rest of 2015: shift my internal dialogue from 1) What else might I do? to 2) How might I have more impact? I think I’ll learn the same, if not more, by digging deeper into fewer things—rather than touching the surface of many.

Asking 2) How might I have more impact? instead of 1) What else might I do? won’t reduce my learning opportunities and exposure. Rather, the question adds a nice constraint—and for someone with the questing disposition, a necessary one.

I’m curious.

The impact of my curiosity might multiply this year with a few more constraints.