How Curiosity Turns Into Purpose
17 Oct 2023
Hey friends
I've been diving into another fascinating read to learn more about the flow state: The Art of Impossible by Steven Kotler.
In the book, he deciphers peak human performance from a neuroscience lens.
Did you know flow might be the pinnacle of mental states when it comes to neurochemical activity?
It's one of those rare moments where are all six major pleasure neurochemicals come together in our brains. (In case you're interested, they are dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, endorphins, norepinephrine, and anandamide)
This might explain why people often describe flow as their favorite experience.
Early in the book, he explains how these neurochemicals play a role in finding one's purpose in life.
First, you need to know human behavior is driven by two things:
Extrinsic Drivers: External rewards like money, fame, or power.
Intrinsic Drivers: Internal rewards, like the pleasure of picking up a new skill, such as playing the guitar
Kotler suggests these five intrinsic drivers are the most powerful: curiosity, passion, purpose, autonomy and mastery.
Curiosity
Think about your current hobbies or profession. At their core, they began as a seed of curiosity.
Every interest begins with this spark of curiosity, accompanied by a rush of dopamine and norepinephrine (adrenaline in the brain).
This sets the stage for deeper exploration.
Curious about what comes next?
2. Passion
As our curiosity grows, it evolves into passion.
"While pure curiosity alone is a potent driver, it's also a foundational ingredient in passion, which is an even bigger driver.
Thus, we can learn to turn that flicker of curiosity into the flame of passion by adding a lot more neurochemical fuel - norepinephrine and dopamine - to our intrinsic fire." - Steven Kotler
3. Purpose
The real magic happens when we align our passion with something bigger than ourselves.
That's when it becomes a purpose. With this, oxytocin joins in, enhancing our focus, productivity, and resilience.
Curiosity → Passion → Purpose.
What comes after purpose? Let's hear it from Steven Kotler:
"Finally, once you have a purpose, you need to layer on the two remaining intrinsic drivers: autonomy and mastery.
More specifically, once you have a purpose, the system demands autonomy, which is the freedom to pursue that purpose.
Then the system requires mastery, which is the desire to continually improve the skills needed to pursue that purpose."
So far, I'm intrigued by this book, and I can't wait to share more insights with you soon.
Stay curious, and until next time.
I'd love to hear your thoughts - tweet at me @Sandrerooo.
Fun Fact of the Week
Ever noticed that when people are stressed, they seem a bit more wrapped up in themselves?
Dr. Sapolsky, author of Behave and professor at Stanford University, recently appeared on the Modern Wisdom podcast to shed light on this.
His research shows that stress not only affects your heart, blood pressure, and bladder, but also your brain (and thus social behavior).
Specifically, stressed people tend to be:
Less empathic
Less tolerant
Less willing to take someone else's perspective
Listen here to the full podcast snippet.
Quote of the Week
Hard work in an inefficient system is rendered impotent, sometimes worthless.
From Unscripted - The Great Rat-Race Escape by MJ DeMarco