A Curious Mind

The Book in One Sentence

The Hollywood producer behind A Beautiful Mind and Apollo 13 makes his claim for why curiosity is the most important meta-skill anyone can learn, sharing practical tips for how to harness your curiosity to advance in your career - and more importantly, deepen your relationships.

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3 Actionable Takeaways

1) Get truly curious about your partner again.

"The couple has stopped being curious about each other - genuinely curious. They don't ask real questions. They don't listen to the answers.

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When our curiosity about those closest to us fades, that's the moment when our connection begins to fray.

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It frays silently, almost invisibly. It's a little simplistic, of course, but the quickest way to restore energy and excitement to your relationships is to bring some real curiosity back to them."

Our Take:

This one really resonated with us. How many times do we sit down with our partner for dinner, ask them about their day, and then get truly curious about their answer? Not often...

That genuine curiosity comes natural on the first date, but it fades over time. We need to make a conscious effort to stay curious, to keep the connection fresh, and energized.

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2) Treat every interaction as an opportunity to learn something new.

"When someone new joins your company, when you're standing along the sidelines at your son's soccer game with the other parents, when you're on an airplane seated next to a stranger, or attending a big industry conference, all those people around you have tales to tell.

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It's worth giving yourself the chance to be surprised."

Our Take:

We hate small talk. We're the type of guys that cross the street when we see someone we know coming down the block, just so we don't have to say hi. But this book changed everything for us.

We've started treating every encounter - whether it's a stranger or not - as an opportunity to become genuinely curious. Next time you're making small talk about the weather, try a different approach. Get genuinely curious and ask a question you actually want to know the answer to. Like Brian says in the quote above, you never know when you'll be completely surprised.

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3) Get genuinely curious about your customers (or anyone you serve).

"Curiosity is what creates empathy. To care about someone, you have to wonder about them.

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Successful businesspeople imagine themselves in their customers' shoes.

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Who is going to use this product? What's going to happen. while they are using it? How is that person different from me?"

Our Take:

There's a reason Jeff Bezos was able to create one the most successful companies in the world. He put the customer first. He didn't focus on what he wanted to build. Instead, he continued to ask, "What does the customer want? What does the customer need?" When you're curious about your customer, you can really care about them. And when you care about them, they will care about you.