Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it can save the copywriter. So says John Forde of The Copywriter’s Roundtable. He makes a great case, starting with Ogilvy, and I have to agree with him.
I was lucky in that I had parents who never discouraged asking questions. Occasionally, my mom would have to make up answers in order to avoid saying, “I don’t know” (these were the days before Google, after all).
This led to some embarrassing situations later (think Waterboy, “My momma always said…”), but it also led to a healthy case of curiosity that I still haven’t forgotten.
It’s important to always ask questions. Like your teacher always said, “There’s no such thing as a dumb question.” So ask away. Find that one thing that no one else thought of – because they didn’t ask about it.
Today, we have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to information at our disposal. You would have to be just plain lazy not to use it. Yes, there is such thing as information overload, but don’t be afraid to toe that line.
Go out there and read or talk to people. Better yet, talk to people who don’t agree with you. Push yourself. It can get uncomfortable at times, but like a good aftershave, that’s how you know it’s working.
It’s nice to talk about, but what now, right? In order to practice what I preach, I’m asking you to be curious. Post a question below – about this post, this blog, this agency or even me – and I’ll answer it. Anything. Prove just how curious you can be.
(Just please remember, while there are no dumb questions, there are inappropriate ones. Keep it civil.)
