Every good thing starts with a desire or eagerness to do something. The same goes for success stories. The more you keep pushing yourself to be knowledgeable and eager to learn, the clearer the way to success becomes.
Curiosity not only helps you in excelling at the professional front, but a study found that it also improves memory and learning.[1] The study revealed that curiosity releases a chemical linked with motivation, dopamine. Dopamine could motivate you more than any words ever could!
Undoubtedly, without a genuine interest or curiosity to learn, you cannot expect yourself to be naturally inclined to learn new things. Eagerness to learn is where your success starts. Let’s not forget that Newton discovered gravity when he was curious as to why the apple fell on the ground rather than going upwards. The list is endless.
So, how can you be more eager to learn and grow into a more successful person?
Here are 13 ways you can naturally increase your eagerness to learn and keep feeding your curiosity to stay focused on your learning goals.
1. Show Your Eagerness
Express your eagerness to learn more in your workplace. Take up every learning opportunity that is presented to hone your skills.
You can also continue taking informational interviews and job shadowing opportunities to keep your curiosity burning. Keep asking more questions and show that you are enthusiastic to learn.
Also, reflect your curiosity towards learning by attending seminars, getting certifications, and enrolling yourself in online courses.
Here are more ways to train your brain to crave learning:
2. Stay Updated
Be it technical or general news, try to be updated on current developments. Stay on top of the news as it can be fodder for all your conversations and could play a vital role in widening your network.
Keep an eye on the latest trends in your field of work. You never know when something new will pop up and become the next big thing.
3. Don’t Stop Developing Your Skills
Make it your goal to update your resume with new skills now and then. Acquired skills and knowledge can help you have an edge in your career. With job requirements changing every day, learn to be eager to learn to stay ahead.
4. Look for Challenges
The best way to learn something new is to start doing something new. Don’t put off your personal or professional projects when you can do them now.
Challenge yourself continuously and look for ways that can help you evolve your career. Gain expertise in what you want to master. Taking up difficult tasks can unleash your capabilities and help you discover your strengths and weaknesses.
5. Learn Lateral Thinking
Thinking outside the box lets you look for answers that could lead to innovation and improved solutions. You never know when a single thought could prove to be a seed for something huge.
Don’t restrict yourself to conventional methods when it comes to learning and developing your skills. Find out what works for you and apply it to your life.
6. Be Open to New Experiences
When you are offered something new at work, try to accommodate it. If it’s a new task with an unfamiliar technology, don’t hesitate to take it up. If it is something that you have not tried before, accept the challenge.
Trying out new things can be a great way to have new learning experiences. Get over the fear of failure if you want to achieve true success.
7. Start to Be Interesting
Being genuinely interested in something makes you interesting as well. It also makes you endearing to the people who are willing to share the knowledge.
By asking the right questions to satiate your curiosity, you can show your passion for learning and start up conversations with people of higher authority with confidence.
Your strong sense of curiosity shows you as you truly are. Your ventures get the extra appeal from your mentors or leaders when it shows its ability to continuously evolve.
8. Gain Initial Knowledge
While it is quite common to be curious about something you don’t know, what keeps you more curious is when you start learning it. Having an initial knowledge of any subject will let your curiosity flow in the right direction and help you become eager to learn. You will know what questions you need answered, and this also makes way for focused learning.
9. Ask Questions
Put yourself in a place where it is easy for you to ask questions. An environment that is welcoming of curiosity is a great one for intelligent minds to thrive. Remove any barrier that could stop you from being curious.
10. Surround Yourself With the Right People
You are an approximation of the people you spend the most time with. It is inevitable that your close circle has a definite influence on your behavior and life path. Hence, it’s important to collect wisdom from those who are around you, and by surrounding yourself with the right people, you can stay curious and keep evolving.
Here are some examples of the people to surround yourself with:
- One person with more experience in your future goals.
- A peer who excels in skills and accomplishments that you don’t
- Someone younger than you who is following a similar path
Having these three kinds of people in your circle helps you have open-minded individuals who can share their knowledge and experiences you need to keep pursuing your goals.
11. Find More Meaning to Life
Not being curious can make your life monotonous and boring, especially when you aren’t eager to learn. When you have the drive to find meaning in all things around you, you become naturally curious.
A curious mind is more satisfied as it knows there is more to life than existing. You will keep finding new ways to enjoy and experience life.
Never settle, and keep expecting bigger things from life.
12. Take Action to Stay Motivated
Set a goal and be motivated to commit to accomplishing it. You can draw up work schedules or learning schedules to keep you on track. The sense of pride and satisfaction you get from accomplishing something adds all the flavor you look for in life.
Don’t give up on yourself and stay motivated to keep tasting the sense of accomplishment. The more driven and motivated you are, the more naturally curious you will be.
13. Get Better at What Makes You Happy
A core need for a healthy mind is confidence and self-efficacy. This comes from your conviction on your abilities. When you learn outside of your own interests, it shows you new ways to get better at something and helps increase your confidence and self-esteem. Your achievements and accomplishments cement this feeling.
Final Thoughts
Learning to be eager to learn as an adult makes it easy for you to behave well in social situations. The constant drive to mastery is fuel to progress. It stimulates your creativity and helps you see the world from a different perspective.
Knowledge gives you the ability to see connections you may have not noticed earlier. Your curiosity boosts your creativity, and your creative solutions will keep getting you curious to attain higher levels of perfection.
That said, learning, unlike any other activity, requires active participation and trains your mind and body to perform at their fullest potential. Try not to let go of any learning experience, and always keep your curiosity mode switched on!
Reference
| [1] | ^ | Science Daily: How curiosity changes the brain to enhance learning |
