When I decided to quit my job and start my own business, I took a giant leap of faith. I’d reached the point where I couldn’t keep going through the motions in my professional and personal life. I was DONE!
The decision came with a lot of fears and doubts. Without a steady source of income, I was terrified of not having enough money to sustain my lifestyle or business. I don't think like this anymore because I learned how to shift my mindset from fear to curiosity.
In this post, I will share three techniques that help you train your brain to be more curious. Practicing curiosity helps me block out self-defeating thoughts, tune out the naysayers, and create a sense of discovery that takes the pressure off of learning how to do things for the first time.
CURIOSITY HELPS YOU TAKE YOUR DREAMS OFF THE SHELF AND MAKE THEM A REALITY
The changes life brings are constant and can happen at any time. Maybe you’re a parent, and your kids are heading off to college. Now, you’re sitting in an empty house, bombarded with thoughts about what’s next for you in life.
Maybe you’ve had a successful career, and you’re ready to explore the creative passions you don’t use in your current job. Or perhaps you’ve always had a burning desire to live in a new city or change your life. These types of changes present opportunities to develop personally, but they can also be difficult if you’re not prepared to confront the obstacles that stand between you and your dreams.
As a human being, you can get so caught up in your head so much that you talk yourself out of making any changes. Sometimes others dissuade you from creating the life you want because it impacts their lives. But you can’t keep ignoring the life that you’re missing out on when you’re only focused on pleasing others.
YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF TO LIVE A JOYFUL AND SATISFYING LIFE
A curious mindset helped me create the energy I needed to pursue my goals. Instead of wishing for change, curiosity got me moving along the path to where I wanted to be in life. Now, I want to show you how to use curiosity to live your life’s most ambitious dreams.
4 Tips for Practicing Curiosity
Here are four tips you can follow to start practicing curiosity and stay on the path to realizing your life’s most ambitious goals.
Decide to be curious. This sounds simple, but it takes time and practice to fully embrace the decision. When you choose curiosity, you create a spirit of discovery and exploration that helps you progress towards your goals. Think about curiosity as a warm-up exercise for your brain. It prepares you to consider all the possibilities that could lead you to achieve your dream life.
Get out of your comfort zone. Your comfort zone lives at the intersection of growth and change, and you have to up the ante to get the results you want. Practicing curiosity will lead you down paths that you’ve never been before. So, if you’re still doing all the things you used to do in the past to realize your goals, and they aren’t working, you’re not practicing curiosity. You’re just doing the same old stuff you've been doing without realizing that the rules have changed.
Engage with other curiosity seekers. We all know someone who has achieved great things in life, but do you really know their story? How did they do it? What was their experience like? The only way to answer these questions is to talk to them. Talking to people who’ve achieved similar goals helped me avoid some common mistakes and learn how to improve the skills I needed to run a successful coaching business.
Discover your process. Creating the path to living the life you’ve always imagined is a process. Practicing curiosity requires an openness to re-learning what works and what doesn’t work. This re-learning involves reflection on your part and the ability to train your brain to be curious and innovative simultaneously. Once you step back and observe, you’ll identify what’s working and what’s not. That’s where the magic happens because you learn where to focus on growing and developing.
What’s Next?
The first step to developing your curiosity practice is to make the decision to get started. Can you get started today? If so, CONGRATULATIONS! You’re now on the path to achieving the dreams you’ve always wanted in life, and no one can stop you.
Soon, you’ll be stepping out of your comfort zone to take on new challenges, talking to other people who’ve made significant life changes, and learning how to perfect your curiosity practice.
I want to know how curiosity is helping you live your dreams. Let’s keep this conversation going on social media. Follow me on Facebook!
Tell me how things are going and if you need help. I’m happy to share more tools and resources that help you step into the life that’s waiting for you.
If you want to learn more about the skills I discussed in this post, listen to my podcast episode about practicing curiosity HERE.
Want More Help?
If you’re ready to discover your path to living a more gratifying life, join my private Facebook group—The BOLD patrol.
We’re a group of like-minded professionals who thrive on self-discovery and personal growth and developing the courage to take BOLD (Big, Overarching, Life-Enhancing, Decisions) actions that create a path to living a more fulfilled life.
So, if you’re ready to take control of your life’s destination, join our community of like-minded people who are making BOLD life changes—join us!
Image: mostafa meraji–Pixabay
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