“One curiosity practice I have is, rather than falling in love with the solution,… I like to fall in love with the problem. When you [do that], you’ll find yourself brainstorming many, many more solutions and coming up with a better solution to the problem.” ~ Erik Neighbour

An app that has people looking for clues, thinking outside the box and seeing sights through new eyes? Yes, please!

I jumped when I learned about Capital Clues, local entrepreneur Erik Neighbour’s new scavenger hunt app. Erik and I dig into the value of curiosity at every stage of his enterprise and consider how gamification helps motivate engagement in just about everything.

You may never look at Abe Lincoln’s hands the same way again!

We are motivated a lot by gamification. I think the monuments and memorials themselves are really interesting, but people have a limit to how much time they can just spend looking by themselves, or listening to a tour guide…When you turn your walk or tour into a game, you can go all day.

Listen to Choose to be Curious #172: Curiosity, Gamification & Capital Clues, with Erik Neighbour

Join the launch event for Capital Clues, July 10, 2022.

Learn more about Capital Clues and check out Guardian Savings, which Erik designed to help raise money savvy kids.

Erik rediscovered the national monuments during the pandemic. And my own new horizons inspired these shows: Engineering & Frederick Douglass Bridge, with Dennis Howland or Ode to Crows, with John & Coleen Marzluff.

I love more than just the lesson about looking up from The Phantom Tollbooth. Here’s my short list.

Our theme and other music are by Sean Balick.

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