I discovered this book on the shelf at a friend’s house. I was curious to read it. 🙂
Curious?: Discover the Missing Ingredient to a Fulfilling Life by Todd Kashdan is a different spin on the find your happiness genre of psychology books. The central theme is not about coddling yourself into finding happiness, but about becoming an explorer when faced with adversity. The author states that curiosity is the central ingredient in creating a fulfilling life.
I really liked this book. It logically broke down the emotional process and how by responding with curiosity we can become more emotionally resilient. Here is a snippet from the book about curiosity.
Curiosity creates possibilities; the need for certainty narrows them.
Curiosity creates energy; the need for certainty depletes.
Curiosity results in exploration; the need for certainty creates closure.
Curiosity creates movement; the need for certainty is about replaying events.
Curiosity creates relationships; the need for certainty creates defensiveness.
Curiosity is about discovery; the need for certainty is about being right.
Curious? also jumps into evolutionary history to explain how we evolved to become anxious and fearful.
As part of a group, our ancestors obtained easier access to food, care, protection and enough sexual invitations to ensure survival and the passage of ones genes. The human mind evolved to fear the possibility of being rejected by the group. We evolved to constantly monitor where we stood from the perspective of other people in the group.
These fears and anxieties survived into the modern world. Instead of suppressing them, the book makes a strong case for questioning them. Investigate, explore, discover and learn. I highly recommend this book.