What does it take to be remarkable?
According to Seth Godin the path to being remarkable is paved by stones of curiosity.
I’d have to agree. If you’re not curious about things, about processes, about life – and about your business, you have little hope of growth; of change. Yet success in business (and in life) happens through growth – which is built on change.
This is why I say a business is never finished. Rather, a business is always a work in progress. How else could it be? No successful business, regardless of how much planning, ever stays the same.
And one reason, according to Seth, is curiosity. Your consumers will be curious. Why not explore your business and how it interacts with your customers with curiosity? Learn about them. Learn from them. Engage them. And change.
In other words, be curious. And being curious will lead you to being remarkable. How does your curiosity make you unique…make your remarkable?
How does my curiousity make me remarkable? Well, the fact that I’m a mom to 7 (of which 2 are non bios) has made me very inquisitive. I’ve spent many hours researching:
1. autism (because my youngest is diagnosed),
2. frugaltiy (because I have to stretch every penny)
3. alternative methods of earning money (because I lost my last job due to the kid’s bout with the flu, court dates-divorce, and specialists’ appts.-autism).
All of this has made me a wealth of information. What better way to share it than by blogging about it?
I might as well make someone’s tragic circumstances a little easier, by sharing the information in an organized manner…
Curiosity is good, I even named my Curious Cat Blogs with that in mind 🙂 Encourage your curiosity. Here is a great story about kids using natural curiosity to learn to use computers. Too often people stop being truly curious and instead just try to find the answer the teacher wants (or in the workplace the boss wants).
supermom,
You got it. Sounds like you’ve found a way. And just your story is remarkable. Connect your story with people in similar situations so that they can see themselves and you’ve got the pillars for success.
John,
Exactly. Kids are a great reminder. I watch at least one of my kids do something remark-worthy every single day. Why? Because they’re learning, they’re growing…they’re curious.
Hot damn! What a fantastic video! Thanks for turning us onto this resource, Dawud.
I’m cursed with the curiosity gene, too. I so related to what Seth said about sometimes having wished he wasn’t. It gets tiring, at times. I fully understand why most people might not be.
Right now, with my design biz pretty much on hiatus, my curiosity _is_ my work, or drives most of it, anyway. Virtually all I do on communicatrix-dot-com is report on the experiences I’m having, trying to make sense of them somehow. I have no idea where it leads to next, but I have to admit, that’s a huge part of the thrill.
I guess I’d never really thought about the relation between curiosity and being (or doing something) remarkable.
I think this underlines the drive that ‘go-getters’ possess. I can attest to this theory!
“You learn something new everyday” couldn’t be more true without curiosity!
As I’ve no doubt said before, my basic philosophy is “Stay curious and open to life. No matter what happens keep learning and growing. Find what you love to do and find a way to share it with others.” It sure works for me.
communicatrix,
The thing that really got me about what Seth said in the video is how much curiosity is drilled out of us. So sad. I keep trying to encourage curiosity and questioning in my children. It’s a lot of work – and sometimes frustrating to answer so many questions. Yet it’s remarkable to see how inquisitive and alive they are because they feel they can get their questions answered. It’s great.
Rick,
Exactly. I thing we have to be curious to learn. Otherwise our learning and growth become limited. And since businesses are run by people, it’s the same for business as for our personal lives.
Jean,
I knew this would fit you perfectly. I think staying curious is one of the hidden keys to staying young. Thoughts?
Curiosity is what keeps me coming back to this blog. Dawud, I can expect the unexpected from you. This is simply fantastic. Do keep it up.
I am one of those curious people who have switched off the tv. I would rather spend time browsing and learning new things. Seth Godwin is someone I read in his blogs and books for the sheer pleasure of learning something new although, I have no commercial interests to use what I learn in a practical way.
One of the messages that I used to think was wonderful, was by a veteran sales supervisor, who used to tell us to be curious about customers, not only about their complaints but also as to why they buy from us. This used to get a lot of information to take corrective action on the negative sides but also helped to strengthen the areas that were building loyalties. Being curious certainly builds sound relationships.
Let me give you an example. Supermom in ny has aroused my curiosity and I hope to visit her blog and get some knowledge and perhaps use it in my life. If I had been spending this time at a tv set, I would have never even heard about this.
So, both in commercial and personal lives we can gain by being curious.
Here we go into some mytsic-zen state of mind talk but to me words like remarkable and unique belong to the ego of how we perceive ourselves.
Now does that translate to the world of sales? I don’t know… that is something that I personally am struggling with.
Perhaps it is all perspective.
Anyway for a company to be “unique” and “remarkable” isn’t as simple as selling something that is better than the competitor. For a company to be unique and remarkable they now have to offer something of value that no one else offers.
Curiosity helps to achieve this. Because if you are curious how you can set yourself apart from the rest of the herd you take the first step of being the authoritive voice in your niche.
AND that is what makes you remarkable to the people who use your services and products.
I like the point business is never finished. That’s how we get most of our clients – by keeping an ongoing relationship with current clients. We get about 90% of new customers via referrals.
Home Recording,
Yeah. I really feel staying curious is one of the huge keys to living a joyous and full life. Otherwise, we loose our chance to change and grow.
And thanks for always being curious enough to check out what I’m sharing here. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I appreciate you joining in the conversation. Same for everyone.
Living Room,
Yeah. Doesn’t curiosity keep us looking around for new ways? I love that.
The Murr,
Great question. For me, I’ve seen that I can be remarkable just in building the relationship. There’s other web designers and business advisors out there – many more. Yet I’m unique both in approach and knowledge. But where I appear to be most unique is in my desire to create relationships. I don’t consider my clients as an income source, for instance. Rather I consider my clients as people who both of us can mutually benefit from by being in relationship. That perspective transcends just a money/service relationship.
So much more I could write about here. I’ll leave it for a few posts.
Vlad,
True. And not just with client relations. Your business is never finished in its visioning, mission, growth and development. Every part of your business should be up for change. Not neurotically, mind you, just consciously.