The repercussions of an idle mind are seldom discussed. While curiosity is a natural human state, we often distract ourselves from it and shrug it off our shoulders. The route that our minds take during moments of curiosity is what brings about so many of the great things in the world, claiming rights creations and bits of joy that pop up in our lives. Yet, there seems to be a dip in the growth of curiosity, probably because we as a society have evolved to stifling our curiosity, deeming it a misuse of our time. Why should we deprive ourselves the formation of new wonderful things? Why should we deter ourselves from getting distracted?

I like to look at curiosity as meandering through your thoughts, letting your mind go to many different places without an agenda. You sort of just let your brain know that it’s okay to get excited over anything it wants to. Your brain needs to hear that sometimes. If you loosen the leash on your mind and let it roam around, there’s sure to be some benefits waiting for you on the other side. You might even learn something about yourself; there are things that you like that you don’t know you like yet, miscellaneous facts you’ve yet to learn but that your future self is getting ready to tell at a party, and a lot of happiness yet to be revealed. The trick is letting your brain go off on tangents for a while, which can be a bit of a challenge to let happen. There are ways to go about it, though.

The best thing you can do, and I know you don’t want to hear this, is to listen to your incessant inner dialogue. That little voice in your head that never pipes down is crucial in revealing your inmost desires. It reveals a lot of other stuff, too, but I don’t want to get to Freudian here. That voice in your head that’s always getting distracted while you’re focusing is really important. The next time that little voice tries to tell you something, I want you to listen to it, humor it, and ultimately decide to let it take the reins. Once you let your thoughts be consumed by curiosity, you’ll probably find there’s a lot you’re interested in. Naturally, the next stage is to Google absolutely every question you ask yourself. We’re talking about who invented ice cream, what is the temperature like in outer space, and can you really get sick from eating too much raw cookie dough? Everything. What’s really advantageous, is that with practice, Your inner voice will probably lead you down more winding paths These more intricate inclinations toward the Google search bar may feature topics such as daily lives of ancient civilians, how to read Latin, and theories about the Library of Alexandria. Watching YouTube videos and documentaries, reading articles and asking people what they know about certain topics will surely lead you to interesting areas of knowledge, no matter where they take you.

You’ll find that letting yourself become curious about many things will give you many things to learn, be excited about, and pursue. You’ll be able to boast your newfound discoveries to whomever may listen, including yourself. It’s always nice to carry a little extra knowledge around– no one can ever take what you learn away from you. Curiosity is merely the starting point for new developments in several areas of yourself. The next time you find your inner voice asking you “Why?” like an aggravating toddler, I  encourage you to give it an answer.