“Try to be one of those on whom nothing is lost,” wrote Henry James. His advice from The Art of Fiction sums up the spirit of choosing to be curious. It’s a decision we can make about how we live our lives and do our work.
Research has shown that curiosity improves learning, strengthens decision making, ignites innovation and is essential to growth and transformation. The good news is: like a muscle, curiosity is something you can strengthen.
Whatever you do, choose to be curious.
Choose to be Curious – An award-winning radio program all about curiosity. We feature research and theory, but mostly it’s conversations about how curiosity shows up in work in life. The show got its start in Arlington, VA and thanks to Pacifica Network is airing on multiple stations:
KCEI 90.1 FM (Taos, NM)
KCIW 100.7 FM (Brookings, OR) Thurs 7:30pm
KMRE 102.3 (Bellingham, WA) Sun 3:00pm
KTWH 99.5 FM (Two Harbors, MN) Fri 9:30am
KXCR 90.7 FM (Florence, OR) Sun 8:30am
WPVM 103.7 FM (Asheville, NC) Thurs. 9:30am
WRWK 93.9 FM (Midlothian, VA) Wed. rotation
If you have a favorite Pacifica Network radio station (and who doesn’t?), encourage them to carry the show!
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Stitcher, Mixcloud or SoundCloud. Like the show on Facebook and follow me there and on Twitter to join the conversation. I unfolded my journey to radio here back in 2017 – might need to update that one!
I am thrilled to have been recognized by the Alliance for Community Media, Hometown Media Awards as Best Community Radio Informational Talk Show Series (2021) and by Arlington Magazine, Best of Arlington, Editor Pick: Local Podcast (2020).
Choose to be Curious was featured on WETA Arts (October 2016) and in DC Bar’s Washington Lawyer magazine (June 2018), where I was described as a “kind of one-woman NPR station.”
And I have had the extraordinary privilege of hosting a series of interviews with contributing authors to Curiosity Studies: A New Ecology of Knowledge [University of Minnesota Press (2020)], edited by Perry Zurn and Arjun Shankar. For more curiosity conversations in support of leadership and transformation, look here.
Wear your curiosity front and center. Visit the Choose to be Curious Shop.
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Lynn Borton is a facilitator—of conversations and transformation—with more than 25 years of experience in strategic governance and change management in the non-profit sector.
Combining the best of science, organizational learning and leadership development, Lynn is working to synthesize the study of curiosity into something we can all appreciate: an exciting path to greater personal well-being, professional success and life satisfaction. Besides, it’s fun.
For nearly 25 years Lynn worked with NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness – the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization), capped by a dozen years as chief operating officer. She has long focused on inclusive, interactive and iterative approaches to support leaders in achieving personal and organizational goals.
Lynn graduated from Yale with honors and a degree in Religious Studies and is proud member of Leadership Arlington Signature Program, class of 2014.
Today, Lynn hosts a radio show on curiosity and is devoting her time and talents to getting people thinking and talking about curiosity.
More from Lynn:
An Ivy League education is a wonderful thing, but I think I may have learned my most important lessons working in a community mental health center following graduation. In that complex and often confusing environment, staying curious was a critical skill. I learned to ask, not assume; to empathize, not judge; to appreciate the importance of world views and life experiences that were very different from my own.
Since leaving my role at NAMI, I have worked with established non-profits and emerging start-ups, traveled, plunged into the frozen Atlantic Ocean, posed as a painter’s model, sewn a couple of quilts and taken some MOOCs, participated in a Moth Story Slam, given a LEAD Talk and trained in audio production.
In other words, I have chosen to be curious.
In doing so, I have broadened and deepened my skill sets, substantially enlarged my social and professional circles, discovered novel areas of interest, unearthed a passion and charted a new and exciting professional path forward.
I’ve come to appreciate the powerful potential of human curiosity – and I’d like to help you leverage that strength in your life and work as well. How can I be helpful to you?