Practicing curiosity matters because for many of us, there is a powerful cycle between trying to change, hitting a roadblock, falling back on old strategies of avoidance, and resuming stagnation. Getting curious helps break that cycle, because curiosity can be described as the stance of withholding judgment because we haven’t got enough information yet, which gives us a real alternative to falling straight into self-critical conclusions.

Ask most people about their strongest motivator, and the answer will often be ‘deadlines’. Whether it’s for school, work, or chores, we often feel most driven by the urgency of barely avoiding a disaster, and this can become our default response.