Curiosity Over Passion--A Superior Tool For Writing

A letter to the people who don’t know yet that they are writers, but have been led to believe they must follow their passion. Passion is often considered one of the key drivers of creative output in the high performance and self-help universe. It’s even considered by some, the best way to find life and career direction. The idea makes sense. Yes, we need to feel the spark to get any writing done. However, is there room for curiosity to lead the way in our search for meaningful activity and for expressing our gifts?

What Mike Rowe Says About Passion

Some believe that passion or fiery enthusiasm for the thing you are doing is an indicator you are all in. It’s a heart’s desire. Otherwise, you are in danger of quitting early. It will be like the undesirable day job. A lot of precious energy is consumed nursing the dream of one day running away from it. Sadly, passion doesn’t equal action or execution of a task. Ask Mike Rowe, who has interviewed people with some of the most disgusting, even repulsive, yet vital jobs on the planet. In a CNBC interview, he summed up passion this way: “Following your passion is like searching for your soulmate. If you think there is only one person in the world that can possibly fulfill you, then your search for that person will be frustrating.” He believes that finding opportunity is the best use of time and energy and it may well get you back to the passion you were searching for in the beginning.”

How To Prepare For Opportunity

Although Mike Rowe is not talking about writers in his Dirty Job series, people waiting for a spark of passion for writing should consider this idea of opportunity. How do we prepare for opportunity in the writing world? With curiosity. A much more energetically sustainable state, curiosity is like meditation.  It’s not overly emotional. We stand on a bridge and look out at the river and the sailboats with curiosity. Are the boats permanent homes? The mother goose and goslings are paddling up and down the river. What if they are robot spies?  Curiosity is at once the question and tons of confidence an answer will come into your awareness. By asking these questions about the people on the boat and the goose and the goslings, you’ve begun to create the foundation for stories. Many successful writers credit curiosity as a driving force in their writing lives.

B. J. Novak On Using Curiosity As A Tool

Multi-genre writer, B. J. Novak who has written the range, from television scripts to a children’s book, alludes to how vital curiosity was as a creative exercise and preparation for the writers at the beginning of each season of “The Office.” Curiosity help the writing process and innovation.

Well, the way that we would start a season – and I’ve adapted this to many things I’ve done since – we’d start with what we would call a “blue sky period” which was my favorite part of every year. For two, three, four weeks – sometimes, if we had a long time – every single day in the writer’s room was just “what if.” …. “What if Dwight goes to the moon?” “What if Jim and Pam get divorced?” Just every idea is valid for a while and that was just an amazing period.

How Storyteller Built Their Tales

Ancient storytellers could very well have built their fairytales and folk tales using this method. What if we have to teach the children not only to be careful but to be fearless also? Curiosity studies a problem, not in a tension-filled way, but with detached eyes on the object. As ancient storytellers, we may be visiting this idea in our head daily. “I wonder what it would be like to tell the children a story to about a boy named Jack who grows like a bean stalk until he touches the sky. I wonder if we should. More than ten times a day, we visit this idea in your head. Maybe Jack should be a real person and the beanstalk should grow from magic seeds. But why would he have magic seeds? The questioning continues until one day we have a fairytale about the magic beans and the adventure Jack has with them.

Use The Question What If? As A Spark

Curiosity isn’t solely a component of creativity; it’s often the heavyweight champion. Einstein once said, ‘I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.’ If inspiration strikes you spontaneously, celebrate! But don’t wait for that spark. Engage actively with your curiosity: read widely, ask ‘What if?’ and explore the worlds these questions uncover. Start today by asking yourself a simple ‘what if’ related to a topic you are curious about. Spend 15 minutes writing down everything that comes to mind. This simple exercise can be your first step towards building a story. The writing journey begins with curiosity—let it lead you to your next great adventure.”

Sources:

Locke, Taylor. (2020, July 7). “’Dirty Jobs’ host Mike Rowe: Following your passion ‘rarely works out’ – do this instead.” CNBC.com. https://www.cnbc.com/video/2020/07/07/heres-why-mike-rowe-thinks-pursuing-your-passion-may-not-lead-to-happiness.html

Ferriss, Tim. (Host). (2015, November 25). B. J. Novak of The Office on Creative Process, Handling Rejection, and Good Comedy (#121). (Audio Podcast Episode). In The Tim Ferris Show. Tim Ferriss. https://tim.blog/2015/11/25/bj-novak/