Choosing curiosity over fear

Elizabeth Gilbert’s name is synonymous with her bestselling memoir, Eat Pray Love, which was borne of a moment of total collapse in her life. You can call it “chick lit,” but it’s inspired millions to move forward with their lives differently. Here Elizabeth reflects on the gift and challenge of creativity. She defines creativity, in life as in art, as choosing the path of curiosity over the path of fear.

Words of wisdom

Curiosity is an impulse that just taps you on the shoulder very lightly, and invites you to turn your head a quarter of an inch and look a little closer at something that has intrigued you. And it may not set your head on fire; it may not change your life; it may not change the world; it may not even line up with previous things that you’ve done or been interested in. It may seem very random and make no sense. And I think the reason people end up not following their curiosity is because they’re waiting for a bigger sign, and your curiosities, sometimes, are so mild and so strange and so, almost, nothing — it’s a little trail of breadcrumbs that you can overlook if you’re looking up at the mountaintop, waiting for Moses to come down and give you a sign from God.

key takeaways

We are all born creative, we just need to tap back into it.

every human child is born doing this stuff innately. It’s an instinct. There’s no child that you put crayons and paper in front of who doesn’t get it, what you’re supposed to do. No four-year-old boy was ever sat in front of a pile of Legos and said, “I don’t know, I’m just — I’m not feeling it.”

Every job, no matter how glamorous, has it's boring bits.

everything that is interesting is 90 percent boring.

Curiosity is a public service

Terrified people make terrible decisions. Terror and fear make you irresponsible. They make you not think very clearly, and they make you willing to do almost anything to get rid of that awful feeling. remain more curious than you are afraid. I think, any time in the community that there’s anybody who’s keeping their head, I think it’s a benefit to everyone around them. I think everything is contagious. Our fear is contagious, but our courage also is. And our courage makes other people be able to be more brave and come out of their houses and come out of their shells and out of their fear.