Polish sociologist and philosopher Zygmunt Bauman defined fear as “the name we give to our uncertainty: to our ignorance of the threat and of what is to be done.”

Ask yourself, “What part of your curiosity project has the potential to affect other people positively?” Once you have that answer square in your head, you can pin it above your desk or in your studio to remind yourself that you are trying to change the world and that your work has real purpose. Changing the world does not necessarily mean curing

There are huge upsides to pursuing curiosity journeys. Learning what interests us can lead to new opportunities, businesses, and experiences. These journeys are life enriching. We also learn more about ourselves, gain confidence, and become stronger and more resilient.

All of them used what I now consider a five-point plan: 1. Mute the dream stealers. Filter the external noise. Focus on partly muting the external world. 2. Reframe your fears as questions, riddles, and experiments. 3. Look inward, and silence your inner critic. 4. Explore who you are meant to be. 5. Turn fear into your second nature; make it part

Be Curious About Problems and Solutions on Paper Curiosity about what may lie ahead is a critical part of the preparation for curiosity journeys. Kick off your analog preparation by imagining what the journey is likely to look like and figuring out possible solutions to challenges you foresee. Do it on paper: conduct a premortem (i.e., imagine a

“What is the bigger picture? What is the relevance of my curiosity project? How can my curiosity journey help other people face their challenges or achieve their aspirations? How can I have a positive impact on other people?” This won’t be a sprint. It will be a marathon.

To satisfy my own curiosity and push beyond what I know, I have started paying attention to the things that matter to my work. The pendulum has swung back from mindlessly scrolling the internet in my downtime to finding something interesting to focus on and embracing the road less traveled. My own experience makes it very clear: now is the time to

Drucker highlighted how prioritizing helps him make progress during his investigations. “I write down action items that I need to complete, including people who I need to speak with, who can collaborate or confirm some part of a story; research I need to do, including anything related that has already been published; check for previous lawsuits

As a mentor or an adviser to several start-ups, I have seen more than one team fail to find its first customer or secure external funding because it focused on finding answers that didn’t exist instead of pivoting when necessary.