Curiosity is Worth the Risk

Curiosity killed the cat? I say it’s worth the risk.

Preschool children ask their parents (on average) 100 questions per day. “Why is the sky blue? Where do babies come from? Why was mommy kissing Santa Claus?” Their curiosity is insatiable.

But by middle school they’ve pretty much stopped asking. It’s not that middle school children understand everything or aren’t still curious. But they’ve been trained to stop asking questions. They’ve been trained with sayings like “curiosity killed the cat”.

But creativity is all about exploration. It’s all about discovery. It’s about curiosity. How many questions do you ask per day?

• “What would happen if I tried the exact opposite of what I’m about to do?”
• “Why does this problem even need to be solved?”
• “Why can’t the sky be a color other than blue?”

While some of those questions may seem silly, creativity is found in them. The pursuit of something outside the accepted and normal leads us to great ideas. Curiosity leads to creativity.

Don’t hold back your curiosity. It’s worth the risk.