Why curiosity brings innovation

Filed Under leadership / management, Motivation-Inspiration, Strategy/Analysis, Successful Blog | Leave a Comment

Have you ever read the book, Who Moved My Cheese? I use the premise of the four characters quite often when I consider the various sorts of folks who cross my path on a daily basis.

For example, as much as I love my mother, I know that she is squarely in the Hem camp. She, among the four analogies outlined in the book, is the character who will continue to visit the empty cheese room, convinced that, surely, certainly, there will indeed be a new cheese shipment arriving any moment. Of course, alas, the cheese never arrives. :(

I’m going to assume that most of the people reading this are probably closer to the Sniff and Scurry sort. You are probably an early adopter, and know which way the wind blows. You probably sense trends and anticipate movement. You are probably curious.

You are probably either independent, or seeking to further your transition to that state. Curiosity is probably one of the best ways to get there, and I’m going to give you my $.02 as to why.

• Curious people try the path not taken.
• Curious people see if something will work.
• Curious people look under the hood.
• Curious people don’t let things lie.

“Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will.” ~ James Stephens

Curiosity is the impetus for bravery in some instances. The curious are DRIVEN, compelled even, by the need to KNOW. As a result, we will take risks. We will shove our fear into our back pocket and “give it a shot,” regardless of any certainty of outcomes.

If you are still reading, I know that I have found a kindred spirit. You are familiar with that feeling in your gut that almost goads you into action. Your need to satisfy your curiosity is more powerful than your fear of failure. Good. That means that you are destined for great things. Because the curious keep trying.

“Millions saw the apple fall, but Newton asked why.” ~ Bernard Baruch

If you are curious, you are also probably an innovator. Most folks walking this earthly plane are content to go about their daily business without looking too far afield. They stay in their lane; color inside the lines and keep their eyes fixed on the stuff right in front of them. They are “safe,” and that’s perfectly oka-lee-dokalee.

Curious people, on the other hand, disembowel clocks. They rip apart business models. They disrupt stuff left and right. They probably spent a LOT of time in the corner as kids. We can be maddening to people who rather we just leave things alone. Status Quo People get really frustrated with the Curious.

“…keep six honest serving-men,

They taught me all I knew;

Their names are What and Why and When

And How and Where and Who.” ~ Rudyard Kipling

However, it is this seeking that leads to expansion and independence. The same curiosity that brought us Tang and the space program also brought us twitter, cleantech, Futurama and the cure for polio.

Speaking of social media, I also believe that the folks who are out here in the ether are a harbinger of a new paradigm (even the Bieberists). Social media has no boundaries and is populated by those who are Seekers.

Whether talking about the Kardashians or PRISM and NSA, this new frontier is peopled by the curious. We may not always be talking about the same thing from the same perspective, but we are talking. Which leads to …

“Be curious, not judgmental.” ~ Walt Whitman

In the pursuit of knowledge, it is vitally important to try very hard to uncover information without assigning specific value to it. For example, the earth is not the center of the universe, although at one point in human history, to state otherwise was cause for excommunication. In order to glean the most from our experiences as we pursue information, it is important to dispassionately observe what we find.

Through trial and error, consistent (and mindful) questioning and a willingness to grow our awareness, we will find ourselves on a glorious journey of wonder.

“The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” ~ Dorothy Parker

Thank goodness.

What led you here today? What would you like to learn? What questions drive you? What steps are you taking to grow your knowledge?

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Molly Cantrell-Kraig is a woman with drive. Possessing an innate sense of purpose and a pragmatic, solution-based approach to empowering people, she fused these two traits in order to establish Women With Drive Foundation. Based upon its founder’s personal history, Women With Drive Foundation is a means through which Cantrell-Kraig may effect change on both a micro and macro level. By providing women with something as essential as personal transportation in order to transition them from poverty to prosperity, she, through Women With Drive Foundation, seeks to empower women to help them help themselves. Through this action, the individual applicant benefits, as does society as a whole. Follow Molly on twitter as @mckra1g or @WWDr1ve (Women With Drive Foundation) or “Like” them on facebook.

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Beach Notes: Living the Dream

Filed Under Motivation-Inspiration, Successful Blog | 1 Comment

By Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh

This was a wonderful greeting that met us one Saturday morning at Rainbow Bay Beach where we walk and swim most mornings.

The sign Beach Report is put out each morning to tell swimmers the current state of the swimming conditions.
We don’t normally see the addition of words like Living the Dream.

These words remind us to ask:

Are you living the dream with your life and business?

Living the Dream

- Des Walsh & Suzie Cheel

Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

How awareness brings inspiration

Filed Under leadership / management, Motivation-Inspiration, Successful Blog, Writing | Leave a Comment

One of the best features of twitter is the opportunity to connect globally with other people around a specific topic each week or month via online chats using a hashtag (#) search to sort the conversation stream apart from the rest of the flow of general tweets. These twitter chats expand my horizons, introduce me to other minds and concepts and also gives me an opportunity to refine my thoughts about any given topic.

If you are interested in knowing more about the online conversation about any number of industries or ideas, here is the link for an evolving twitter chat directory.

Regardless of industry, a common topic during chats is about blogging; specifically, what inspires us to write.

There are as many ways to be inspired as there are ways to write. Some write each day, training The Muse to show up whether (S)he wants to or not (for example, The Artist’s Way). Some feel as though they can’t write unless they have anything of interest to say and are moved to commit bytes to the ether.

To answer the question as it relates to me? I draw inspiration from other bloggers, quotes, songs, my children, interactions with people in my daily life and seemingly random coincidence. But that’s not really what this week’s blogpost is about, actually.

After talking about it during a chat, I started to become more aware of being inspired and looking for inspiration in everything. This twist on the concept of “breaking the fourth wall” and being a dispassionate observer of my life helped me to learn more about how I interact with others.

Which leads me to the overarching concept of this blog and Independent Ideas. In order to be independent, one must be apart from the pack, so to speak. Having an awareness of one’s actions, how those interactions affect others and being mindful of our choices leads to a different way of Being by default. One cannot be aware and remain unaffected by the consequences of one’s actions. It’s impossible.

Writer/poet Paulo Coelho expands upon this concept on his blog with an entry about the archer and the Zen Master. An excerpt reads, “You may have great skill with the instrument you choose for your livelihood, but it is useless, if you cannot command the mind which uses that instrument.”

It really is mind over matter. Thinking makes it so. We each have the capacity of conquering our own minds. We decide what is important to us. We decide what inspires us and we decide what drives us. Our choices are how those decisions are made manifest.

One of my best friends was an 80-something jazz pianist, now deceased. About 14 years ago, over coffee, Bob shared with me a nugget of wisdom he had collected over his decades of living. “Molly,” he said, “everything is cumulative.”

Our independence is built moment by moment, day by day, choice by choice. What inspires you? What is your vision? What are you willing to decide in order to make it happen? It is ultimately up to you.

__________________________________

Molly Cantrell-Kraig is a woman with drive. Possessing an innate sense of purpose and a pragmatic, solution-based approach to empowering people, she fused these two traits in order to establish Women With Drive Foundation. Based upon its founder’s personal history, Women With Drive Foundation is a means through which Cantrell-Kraig may effect change on both a micro and macro level. By providing women with something as essential as personal transportation in order to transition them from poverty to prosperity, she, through Women With Drive Foundation, seeks to empower women to help them help themselves. Through this action, the individual applicant benefits, as does society as a whole. Follow Molly on twitter as @mckra1g or @WWDr1ve (Women With Drive Foundation).

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