Happy 75th Birthday Curious George. You look great for your age and it is great to confirm that contrary to rumours, you weren’t eaten by a lion on the safari you took with ‘the man in the yellow hat’.
‘Be like Curious George, start with a question and look under the yellow hat to find what’s there.” James Collins
In a world where polarization is becoming the norm and rigidity, partisanship and stubbornness reigns, what if you were the one to bend? Could you concede that you may only be 74% right? Would you be willing to listen to someone you disagree with and consider (not just accept) 26% of what they feel, believe or ‘know’? Are you flexible enough to sway a bit and still feel rooted in your values?
True curiousity exists when we seek to understand not seek to get an advantage. I have done both and am embarrassed to say am better at asking questions to gain ammunition. But on those days when my curiousity extends beyond my self interests to my interests, I am enriched and strengthened. Whether going to the beach or encountering an electric fence George took risks to gain additional information and awareness. He ‘asked’ ridiculous questions and began his analysis slightly a kilter from the norm. Every day was an everyday adventure because there was always something to try, something to question, something to upturn and look under.
George had a beginners mind and didn’t assume that because something was so that everything else was so. The cult of expert has made me/us lazy and we just accept and swallow ‘facts’. We are all better when we are courageous and challenge the accepted norms (even when they are true/right/best in the end).
Even if you are an expert, you can grow, learn, improve by adopting George’s posture ;not hunched over on all fours, but a posture of inquisitiveness and astonishment.
George made it to 75 and has been translated in dozens of languages, is on PBS and Disney by being curious. I wonder where you could go, if you asked 3 ridiculous questions every day?
Make Today Remarkably Curious,
B
Make It Your Problem 