There have been times in life where I get borderline obsessive about a certain topic, skill, or thing. There’s this intense desire and force pulling me to learn everything about something, someone, or someplace. I can easily go weeks — even months — hyper-focused on any given topic through trial and error.
There’s something pure and innocent about that level of curiosity.
I lose it sometimes, usually when I let myself get too distracted. But it never leaves. It just waits to be fed.
Lately I’ve been thinking about the side quests I’ve taken throughout my life. I’ve pursued connections, places, and skills out of curiosity and fascination. And I’ve often caught myself filing them away as “phases” that led to nothing.
But that’s not true.
Twenty years ago I went on a four-year side quest learning to breakdance. That skill and a stack of business skills I never connected to each other are now doing the same job, for the same people, at the same time. I didn’t plan any of it. Talk about divine planning.
Time has taught me that anything pursued out of curiosity is never a waste.
Every side quest leaves you with something — exposure, familiarity, instinct. Tools you carry whether you notice them or not. And they make you better equipped for whatever challenge comes next.
Maybe you can relate.
After enough pursuits of curiosity, you come across a golden challenge. Gamers call it a final boss. Athletes call it a championship. Musicians call it a masterpiece.
What I’m describing is a moment where you’re put to the test. You have to reach for every tool you’ve accumulated — all of them, all at once. It’s the only way through.
That’s a true defining moment. It changes everything. This is when you earn your next level, and you’re never the same after it.
Why am I sharing this?
Because I want to remind you to follow your curiosity. Collect what look like random tools but are actually pieces of a puzzle you’ll eventually have to solve. So when your time comes, you’re ready for it.
The other reason is that I think I’m facing a golden challenge of my own. Something I’ve been training for without realizing I was training for it.
Stay Ready,
Goya