Curiosity is an openness to the world and an interest in it. Curiosity about ideas can lead to better creativity, while curiosity about people can lead to empathy. Taking in new people allows us new perspectives. As much as the people in our lives already are valued, they usually can’t give us that valuable new perspective. Both curiosity and empathy are hallmarks of emotional intelligence. Not only are they good things to have, but emotional intelligence is the new job coin, sought for in new employees. Fractal thinking makes use of emotional intelligence as much as it does more traditional “academic” forms. It is the sort of thinking that will be needed more and more as society’s problems become evermore complex.
Key Takeaways:
- We get the best new ideas by observing and engaging with people outside our social groups whose perspectives, worldviews, experiences and backgrounds are different than our own.
- In theory, at least, employers have recently been expressing more desire for curiosity in their employees.
- Bruno Marion described a ?fractal? person as being able to hold onto and comprehend many different ideas, concepts and viewpoints at once in a dynamic manner.
“Basically, curiosity about ideas can foster creativity, while curiosity about people can develop empathy (not sympathy).”
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