on life, ambitions, and dreams

Networking in the Cave of Wonders

The Blue Room, left-hand (Stuart Richards)

The word wonder makes me think of a cave where you can find everything you want and everything that you desire. Once you find this cave, however, you have to be smart and not be tempted by all of the wonders that lay in the way between you and what you want to find most. This cave is of course fiction, a la Aladdin.

This is the first #reverb10 prompt that came through and I didn’t know my answer right away. This question is large, deep, and vast, like all wonders should be. And the author is asking us not to find one wonder but to share the recipe for how wonder existed in our lives over the past year.

Kind of a hard prompt if you didn’t march through the past year searching for the marvelous somethings that exist in life.

So I went to Twitter to look for inspiration, read a few posts to see how others interpreted the prompt, and I found my answer.

How did I cultivate a sense of wonder in my life this past year? By walking into a room where I knew nobody and introducing myself.

Networking. Meeting people. Building relationships online and bringing them offline. Asking questions like, “What are you passionate about?” and “Would you like to meet for coffee?” and caring what their answers are.

I find inspiration in connecting with others—from learning about their experiences, sharing how they interpret the world, and emphasizing with their ideas—everything. Even if it’s a brief conversation in line at a coffee shop with someone I will never meet again, they spark my curiosity and offer a new perspective, be it small or VERY LARGE.

Their impact can present itself in an immediate “ah ha!” moment or they can simmer and reveal over time.

Some of these connections have grown from mild curiosities into deep friendships; some have brought me into new social circles and introduced me to incredible experiences; and some have weaved their way into the very core of who I am.

People have the power will surprise you—good or bad—because they are not you. That’s why going through life curious and open is so important to me, and I plan to keep marching through life that way at opportunity that I can.

How have you cultivated a sense of wonder this past year?

Photo Credit: left-hand

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