What Is The Cost of Curiosity?

As we round out our month of exploring the ideas, concepts, and motivations that come from curiosity, I began to wonder - is there a cost or down side to curiosity?

In pop culture, specifically sitcoms and movies, the most curious person is portrayed as a geek, a nerd, or propellerhead. They're often asking one more question and being told to be okay with not knowing. Or, on the flip side, they are the grouchy character that won't let an unsolved mystery go. They keep digging where they've been told not to and they refuse to let go of the case that no one else can solve. In the process, they lose their friends, family, and dignity.

But those are not the downsides that I was thinking of.

Curiosity can leave you on the outside of the status-quo looking in.

l was reflecting this weekend on some of the most recent posts in my #40for40 blog series where my curiosity took me on a new path. That new path caused me to discover something unexpected and outside of my current understanding of the world and in doing so, compelled me to update my map of the world. But in doing so, I had to acknowledge that things that I had previously held as facts were only part of the story. In doing so, my actions on that new information put me square in the crosshairs of those determined to keep the old facts as truth. My new information was undermined and shamed, my experience exploring outside the lines was called into question and then my integrity and character along with it.

Curiosity that leads to action can be the source of a lot of pain, even if it is actually just growing pains.

When curiosity uncovers new information, curiosity isn't concerned about your feelings or how that new information will affect your life. Once you know something new, the choice is on you: do you acknowledge it and take the action it compels you to or do you ignore it and continue on your way? The older I get, the more I realize that there is a point in most people's lives where new information and discovery have a much higher cost to them than before. As a result, they stop looking and stop accepting that there is more to understand about this world than they have understood.

What other downsides are you aware of in your experience with curiosity?

If you are reading this post and not already a "Roomie" - we'd love to include you in our discussions this month. In the same way we tackle Curiosity, we are in the middle of our month-long discussion on Accountability as we speak. Only paid members, or "Roomies" as we've started to call ourselves, have access to the conversations in real-time and are invited to the virtual meet-ups and discussions. You can join just for this next month or you can sign up for the year. Just check out your options here