Curiosity is not what it seems to be….
Curiosity, lately, has become somewhat of a buzzword. People are going out of their way to weave into their conversations, their posts, and their blogs how “authentically curious” they are. (Oops….2 buzz words – authentic and curious – my bad!)
Curiosity is, in fact, a synaptic response, caused by an outside stimulus.
The synaptic portion of the stimulus: response relationship is the part of the circuit in a nervous system that connects sensory organs, such as those that detect things like pain or touch, to the brain.
Curiosity is housed in the parasympathetic nervous system, the part of the nervous system that slows the heart, calms the body, soul, mind, and spirit, and allows for clarity of thought, greater relaxation, and stress reduction.
Curiosity calms, and curiosity can take a person to a higher level of thinking, problem solving, and collaboration. Curiosity is the synaptic path to creativity.
If curiosity is the response, what is the stimulus?
In simplest of terms, the stimulus to the curiosity response is EMPATHY. The sincerest form, of feeling for another person, or group in a shared and communal way. Empathy is the act of understanding on a connected and aware level, what another person or group is feeling, experiencing, and moving through.
EMPATHY is not something you think to do, or decide it is time to do…. EMPATHY JUST IS….and when you experience even the quietest whisper of what EMPATHY is saying, it touches you so deeply, that it sets curiosity in motion. Empathy is the cause, Curiosity is the effect of that cause, and the outcome of the curiosity should be a questioning self, asking things like:
“What if we tried something different?”
“What if we stretched a little farther?”
“What if we looked to see farther than our own horizons?”
“What if we fail to try something different?”
Curiosity…. AUTHENTIC CURIOSITY…is an action, a reflex to empathetic echoes. Empathy and Curiosity exist together, and like any other nerve that receives stimulus information and response output, both need to be used, exercised, worked, and put into practice on a regular basis to function effectively. Empathy and Curiosity are all time virtues, not sometime statements.
If you want to find curiosity in your day, find empathy in your heart.
If you want to demonstrate curiosity, live a life that demonstrates “What if….”
In our professional worlds, Empathy and Curiosity, are absolute assets, almost “superpowers” that set us apart…. make us DISTINGUISHED.
At PK SOLUTIONS GROUP, our mission is to help awaken empathy within, to guide curiosity throughout, and to build ABUNDANCE in the lives of those we serve.
Let’s connect and see what that AWAKENING looks like in your world.
