We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths – Walt Disney

I was having lunch with my friend Elliot Strunk the other day. He is the ringleader of Fifth Letter in Winston Salem and he posed a great question to find out if someone has mailed it in or not. Elliot asked “Are they curious? “ 

What a great question. In fact, I have thought about it ever since. I think curiosity is one of the little mindsets that leads to longevity in a profession and quality of life. Where would we be without it? How many things would have never been discovered without curiosity?

Whatever areas you are curious about you will continue to learn and grow. You will find new solutions to problems. You will have better relationships. You will disrupt the status quo. The world needs us to be curious.

The moment we stop is the moment we become stale and out dated. The day I stop being interested and eager  about business and marketing is the day I stop being valuable to my clients and partners. The day I stop being intrigued and inquisitive about my wife and family is the day I stop growing in my relationship with them.

We owe it to our co-workers, friends, communities, and customers to be curious about how to help them.

Are you still curious?

photo credit: glsims99

Everyday opportunities are hidden in plain site all around us. Like being in the Matrix, the passing parade of humanity glides through life in a conscious coma of mediocrity. Only those who challenge the status quo and battle the enemy of average will have the veil of ordinary lifted.

The other day I was reminded of a story about Marty and Chris, two young entrepreneurs, who decided lemonade stands reminded them too much of archaic outdated business models that made average homogeneous products (Ok, this is my version of the story). But they did want to do something different from every other kid in the neighborhood. I mean, how much better can you make lemonade than Molly or Jimmy down the street. Each of the last two summers they had a lemonade stand which was mildly profitable. Only problem was that each summer new stands were going up. The James twins now had a lemonade stand, and so did the Thompson kid, not to mention the youths three streets down sold pink and regular lemonade. Sure, they lived in a populous neighborhood, on one of the connecting streets between main roads that brought many prospective clients by. Unfortunately, this summer’s business was slow, it was almost as if they became invisible to the drivers-by passing from Market to Oak streets. This year, rarely did their pitcher of tart nectar quench the thirst of anyone but the police officer that emerged twice a day from a canopy of pines and elms which stretched their arms at the sun providing him shade and stealth. This gave Chris and Marty an idea.

The following day as Brad White was running late to a lunch appointment and hurriedly driving down the cut through street he saw a boy sitting in a lounge chair, under an umbrella, sipping lemonade, and holding a sign that read SLOW DOWN!! COP WITH RADAR ½ A MILE AHEAD.” Faithfully, Brad’s foot compressed the brake pedal and the car’s speed dropped just below the speed limit as he noticed a police car crouched in the tree line like a Lion lying in wait for unknowing prey along the Sarengeti. “That was close” Brad mused. About a mile down from the radar wielding officer was another boy, fashioned much like the first, with a sign which read “TIPS PLEASE.” Brad pulled over next to where the boy sat holding a stack of greenbacks, and tossed him a $10 bill.

When we step away from the masses our creativity gains strength, no longer drained by the kryptonite of the mundane, and we can see the opportunities to contribute in ways others haven’t. The greater our contribution to our community and marketplace the greater the rewards we reap. We must continue to cast off restraints and free our creative minds. Then we will have the vision to see the opportunities that lie invisible to the crowd.

photo credit: Gabe Mulley