Goodbye Judgment, Hello Curiosity!

This summer is passing quickly. As I am readying myself for another great adventure in just a few days I’m finding it’s time to look into the self-awareness mirror and get inquisitive so that the exploits in front of me are fresh, engaging and very memorable. In other words, I’m not taking any outdated version of myself to where I’m going.

This upcoming escapade has me challenging my perceptions and assumptions, releasing judgment and getting downright curious about me and my possibilities; I’m joining my clients in my ongoing and unwavering invitation to refresh and reinvent ourselves in the very best ways.

Come join our expedition to excellence as we all say goodbye to judgment and hello to curiosity!

Have you, like me, ever paid close attention to what a creature of habit you are? It can be shocking and seen in just about every detail of our lives. From the time we awake to the time we call it a day, we spend a fair amount of our life in repetitive patterns. Our routines help us to self-identify and feel safe.

Interestingly, we think this familiarity helps us sleep at night. However, this very repetition of living yesterday again today and tomorrow has us quick to develop opinions about almost everything that we unconsciously see as a threat to our status quo.

Those “opinions” we freely toss around are really judgments and they have us taking our cues from our outside environment and looking at our world through a familiar and limited lens devoid of new possibilities, scenarios and an ever evolving self. They also always define our self, not the targeted recipient.

Judgment is not voice of truth or authority. It is the voice of our current belief system weighing in on every single thing! Ourselves, others, circumstances, situations, opportunities; nothing is safe or sacred. Our judgements, while restricting our choices, are our addictions to a way of thinking that is always fear based, separating us from others and keeping us living outside the realm of harmony, happiness and a meaningful future.

If judgement keeps us stuck, then know this, curiosity is the antidote; the tool that takes us into the world of promise and potential.

When you are willing to grow beyond what you are currently feeling, defending, creating and experiencing in your life, curiosity is one of the most powerful tools to use. Why? Because curiosity blows the B.S. whistle, calling you out to challenge old stories and assumptions and become more intellectually and emotionally mature and relevant in your life here in 2015.

So how do you say goodbye to judgment and hello to curiosity?

Start by listening to your voice when you are in judgement. Hear that question you’re asking? It really sounds more like a statement, doesn’t it? Hear how quick it is to weigh in? Hear its negativity, its certainty, its verdict? Hear its dead-ended hopelessness? That’s judgment, the voice of the doubter where you activate the amygdala; the fear, fight or flight center of your brain that keeps you recycling your life.

Now, apply new vocal inflection to the same statement, so it actually becomes a question! Use a tone of voice that is kinder and truly wants to know the answer. Use the voice you would use to comfort or coax the best out of someone you love. That’s the voice of curiosity. Allow one question to ignite another and another; stretching out the questioning is the key component to activating your pre-frontal cortex, the creativity and solution seeking center of your brain. That’s where you engage the dreamer and the new frontiers that lie waiting to be discovered and mastered.

And always, always take an action step that is rooted in your new perspective and choice. It’s really not enough to just get curious; new thoughts, actions and habits are what create positive personal change and foster higher levels of self-confidence, self-worth, self-love and success.

The world we live in today is expanding quickly on every front and our thinking needs to be agile and relevantly progress along with all the changes. There is so much to consider and it is no longer enough to think equal to the ways we’ve thought before. So say goodbye to judgment and boldly stretch your observations beyond worn out beliefs, allowing your curiosity to take the lead … right into a future filled with compassion, connection and expansion.