- The Mind, Explored.
- Posts
- Should We Follow Our Interests?
Should We Follow Our Interests?
Pursuing the path of maximal development.
The Mind, Explored.
February 04, 2024
As babies, we know just about nothing when we’re born. Other animals are born with strong instincts to act as they need to, while we humans need to learn almost everything from experience.
Does this put us at a disadvantage? Or, is this our unique edge?
Given that our chance of survival is most determined by our ability to learn and develop, we are deeply driven to be interested in new things, to learn from them, and to master them.
"So, interest - the desire to learn new things, to explore the world, to seek novelty, to be on the lookout for change and variety - is a basic drive."
Insight:
When we are interested in something, we are deeply engaged.
Engaged also means ‘to promise to marry’, reflecting the intensity, commitment, and love we feel when we are occupied by something we are interested in.
It then comes as no surprise that, when we are interested in what we’re doing, we feel deeper satisfaction, we put more effort in, and our performance is greater. This reaps the same benefits as intrinsic motivation, which is born out of genuine interest.
When a task interests us, not only are we more resilient in the face of obstacles, but we feel motivated to go beyond the bare minimum and search for new and improved ways of doing things. This is how innovation happens.
How do we become interested in something?
Carl Jung proposed that our interest is captured unconsciously. In other words: you don’t choose your interests, they choose you.
“One of the huge mistakes people make is that they try to force an interest on themselves.”
Having no choice in what interests us may seem a little scary, even threatening our need for autonomy.
But what if - just as helpless babies are gifted with the power to learn - our powerlessness over what captures our interest leads us down a path of maximal development?
If we were to consciously choose our interests, we would be influenced by an infinite set of factors outside of our true inner self. Instead, being unconsciously pulled towards our interests ensures that our interests are aligned with our most authentic selves.
Interest is therefore an evolutionary mechanism that leads us along a path that expands us towards our higher self. Think of it as a call to adventure.
Finding a practical way to follow our interests:
We need to align our interests with work that rewards us for deepening them.
For example, if someone is interested in video games, simply playing video games all day is unlikely to align with the rewards of work. Instead, they may be better off learning to create video games, or joining the marketing team for a video games company, or choosing another role in this sphere of work.
Every job has its moments that drain us, stress us, and make us lose interest. But choosing an overall mission, industry, or product that interests us will help keep us engaged.
Otherwise, without following our interests, we may never fully develop into our most fulfilled self.
Tool:
3 steps to discover your interests:
Step 1: Reflect
What activities make time fly by?
What do you love learning about?
Step 2: Explore
Research fields you’re curious about.
Connect with people in those fields to gain their perspective.
Step 3: Experiment
Try out something that has made it this far. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to take you in a direction that feels good.
Be open to your interests evolving. You may discover that what you like about one activity (e.g. writing lyrics for songs), may lead you to another activity (e.g. writing stories about real-world events).
Prompt:
When do you find yourself most meaningfully engaged? Where does your mind wander to over and over again? What do you really care about?
Whatever comes to mind, give yourself permission to expand on it. It may lead you on your path of maximal development.
Resources on Following Your Interests:
One video: You Can’t Choose What You’re Interested In (Jordan Peterson) - but a lot of it has to do with who you are.
One book: Curious: The Desire to Know and Why Your Future Depends On It (Ian Leslie) - how being interested in the world drives growth, innovation, and engagement.
One film: The Imitation Game (Morten Tyldum) - Alan Turing followed his interests in code-breaking to make a monumental impact in World War 2.
Written by Dr Manu Sidhu 🩺
If you’re interested in hearing founders, investors, and experts explain how technology is being leveraged to improve mind health, check out the MindTech Podcast, also created and delivered by Dr Manu Sidhu.
The most recent episode dives into a startup led by a founder who lived through the very experiences he is now solving by taking a data science approach to mental health:
Available on Spotify and on YouTube.
Feel free to email back with any thoughts, questions, or ideas for us to explore.
If this article resonated with you, the best way for you to support is by sharing it with others who may be interested.
If this article has been forwarded to you, someone who knows you well believes you may be interested in mind-related content.
To receive emails with articles like this, subscribe here.
Disclaimer:
The Mind, Explored. is for informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information in this newsletter or materials linked from this newsletter is at the user’s own risk. The content of this newsletter is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of health care professionals for any such conditions.
Reply