Tag Archive for: curiosity

Curiosity

Out for a walk in the Scheveningse Bosjes yesterday, “that’s an unusual looking dog” we said to each other.
It looked a little bit like a labradoodle.
Curiously we asked the lady walking her dog’s “what kind of dog is that one?”
“He’s a curly haired retriever” she said.
We’d never heard or seen that breed before.
Many curious questions followed, and the conversation flowed easily.
Curiosity was driving our questioning.
Curiosity – “A strong desire to know or learn something.”
Curiosity is a genuine spirit of open enquiry, mixed with a keen desire to learn, all of which is centred upon a willingness to discover new things.
Prior to serving here in the Netherlands as missionaries, genuine curiosity, was an essential part of my coaching practice.
Frequently we learn by simply being curious like a child.
Yesterday, curiosity was driving our questions to the lady about her dog. Subsequently, I researched a little more about the breed.
In a similar manner, many people often ask us questions about our church service here in the Netherlands.
• Why are you here?
• What do you actually do?
• How long do you serve?
• What is the Book of Mormon?
• Do you believe in Jesus Christ?
• What does your church believe about life after death?
• Why do you build Temples?
All these are great questions driven by curiosity.
So – what are you curious about?
If you’d like to find some answers to these questions or more, simply pm me. I’ll be happy to answer any genuinely curious question about our faith and service in Belgium and the Netherlands. 😊
PS – post mission life, this may be the type of dog we’ll be looking for!! 😉

Curiosity

“Tell me, on a scale from 1 to 10, where are you right now?” I asked curiously…

Since my earliest childhood memories, I’ve been curious about things, people, nature, places, history, travel and culture to name a few. I have always been eager to know or learn something new and understand “why?” That probably explains one of the seemingly insatiable penchant’s of mine…..reading books!

One vivid memory from my childhood involved filling a jam jar with some foliage and then capturing a bumble bee. I’d already had some help to put some holes in the lid of the jar, so that any bee’s I captured could breath. I recall observing and listening to the bee for no more than a day, studying it, feeling sad about keeping it in a jar and then setting it free again.

Curiosity is often seen as the driving force behind not only human development, but developments in science, language, and industry. I know too that it is a vital component in coaching and mentoring

My experience is that questions driven by the curiosity of a coach can be the catalyst and driving force for change. I have come to understand that curiosity is the key to learning. It can help to expand our empathy too by helping us understand life experiences different than our own.

What are you curious about?

Thinking!

“What do I want to do from here?” said the small voice in my head – then the wacky thoughts started to explode!

In preparation for a virtual creative thinking session with a work colleague (thanks Paul – it was fun!) – I worked my way through some of Edward de Bono’s six creative thinking hats.

I started to think about the thinking – Blue
Next, I considered the facts of what I knew – White
I was mindful of my feelings and hunches – Red
The wacky, pie in the sky ideas surfaced – Green
Lots of useful positivity emerged – Yellow
Together, later in the day, Paul and I would discuss the risks – Black

My thinking complete, I emailed Paul with a number of my zany ideas. I carefully couched the descriptive language of my nutty thoughts, followed by some more traditional models and rational group exercises.

I was a little apprehensive, but curious too, as to what he’d make of my thinking! For over an hour, we bounced around a whole range of ideas together and what emerged, was a smorgasbord of creative concepts that were extremely satisfying to digest! It was great fun!

Working together – we created more in a balanced way. We both know that all of the thinking isn’t complete, but we are well on our way.

How do you brainstorm new ideas?