≫ [PDF] Free A Curious Mind The Secret to a Bigger Life Brian Grazer Charles Fishman 0884606946074 Books

A Curious Mind The Secret to a Bigger Life Brian Grazer Charles Fishman 0884606946074 Books

Download As PDF : A Curious Mind The Secret to a Bigger Life Brian Grazer Charles Fishman 0884606946074 Books

A Curious Mind The Secret to a Bigger Life Brian Grazer Charles Fishman 0884606946074 Books

I had such high hopes for this book because I think the intended message, curiosity is meant to be cultivated and enjoyed, is very important. Incredibly however, this self-described master storyteller cannot tell a story. The entire effort is a gross violation of the first rule of writing "show, don't tell". The pontification goes on and on, and I kept waiting for some interesting anecdote from the writer's "curiosity conversations". Occasionally there was a spark, but rather than nurture it the author snuffed in out with the umpteenth reiteration of the importance of curiosity. The repetition finally overwhelmed me. I can't remember the last book I put down before finishing, but, alas, this one met that fate.


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A Curious Mind The Secret to a Bigger Life Brian Grazer Charles Fishman 0884606946074 Books Reviews

I liked the premise of this book. A guy with the perspective and reach of Brian Grazer deconstructs curiosity as a valuable tool for living. Just as with Charles Duhigg's The Power of Habit, David Brooks’ The Road to Character, and Ask for It by Babcock and Laschever (all excellent books), I hoped to gain some understanding of those qualities that help us achieve our greatest human potential. Ultimately, my reaction was mixed.

The book started strong. I agree with the premise that we don't give curiosity enough credit. Brian Grazer says that with A Curious Mind, he wants to accomplish three things about curiosity demonstrate its value, show us how he uses it, and “start a conversation about” it. Grazer says curiosity is the quality that has allowed him to become the person (successful and happy) he is. Curiosity can find you a satisfying job, rescue you from boredom, enhance creativity and motivation, give you a greater sense of security, confidence, and well-being...it’s such a great quality to have, but we never hear much about it. “Creativity” and “innovation” we hear about. Curiosity? Not enough. I agree it’s underrated. Curiosity is probably the single most important quality that’s keeping my 90-year-old mother chugging along as well as she is, for example. I personally credit curiosity with my own happiness and, to a great extent, professional success.

Right away, I saw that writers and other creatives would benefit from cultivating curiosity. Unless the writer forces herself to get out and talk to people, and is really interested in the answers to their questions - this is a tall order since most writers are introverts - you can't really write good characters. You can't know what it's like to be inside the minds of other people who think differently than you. Curiosity also deepens your creative well. You get more ideas, more “what ifs.”

Unfortunately, at the halfway point, the material became a bit redundant. I kept waiting for the reader takeaway. Once convinced that curiosity is important, what next? It wasn’t until the Appendix that Grazer shared some good ideas for conducting “curiosity conversations” with people. That part of the book was valuable enough to print on actual paper for future reference.

Bottom line, A Curious Mind is helpful but repetitive. Grazer might have cut some ruminations and instead supplied tips from behavioral experts to help the reader. For example, what can one do to become a more curious person? Grazer offered only this “There is no trick to curiosity. You just have to ask one good question a day, and listen to the answer.”

Well, okay.

Brian Grazer is a worldly person with what seems to be a curious, eager, respectful, and grateful attitude toward life, but there are probably more helpful books available on this topic.
I had high expectations for this but was disappointed. 44% of the book is taken up by a list of people Grazer spoke to, acknowledgements, author biographies and an index. I feel ripped off. Grazed says he didn't want the book to be about "his" curiosity but about what curiosity can do as a tool in all our lives. It would have been instructive for him to provide a few examples making the connection between a curiosity conversation and a decision he made and the impact on his life. The is a lot of philosophizing about the power of curiosity.... I'd prefer a little less tell, a little more show.
I had no idea who Brian Grazer was before seeing an interview with him promoting A Curious Mind. After hearing the concept and realizing how prominent he is in the entertainment industry I was really interested to read this book. Overall it is an easy read and definitely worth it.

The interviews Grazer has done are absolutely fascinating. He only really shares maybe 10-15% of them in detail and most are with people that are completely inaccessible to regular society; such as multiple US Presidents, Fidel Castro, Andy Warhol, Mick Jagger, Oprah Winfrey, etc. Some are people that I wasn’t aware of (but probably should have been) such as the scientist who invented the atomic bomb and a South American woman activist who was held captive for more than a month by the government and lived to tell about the torture she endured and the tyrant dictator responsible. All of them made me want to learn more.

Grazer also shares a good amount about his life, his work and his thought process behind the “curiosity interviews.” These were all interesting topics but unfortunately he gets a little redundant throughout the book. I only needed to be told about his box office successes once – not every other chapter. He does make a really great argument for the intellectual side of curiosity and how undervalued it is. I just would have preferred if there was one chapter dedicated to his life, and another at the end with what he wants to teach the reader around the importance and power curiosity can hold.

My only other slightly negative feeling was that I really wanted to read more of Grazer’s interviews in detail. The end of the book lists pages and pages of names he has met over the past 20 years. There are so many intriguing people – it was almost disappointing not to get more. (i.e. Steve Jobs, Howard Stern, Mark Cuban, Jay Z…just to name a few). Hopefully he has another edition in the works!
You would think Grazer, being in the movie industry knows about the difference between show and tell. All he does here is tell the same thing over and over. I could get a dictionary if I wanted to know what curiosity meant. Beyond the first chapter, there is very little to engage the reader. When it comes to writing a book, the man has shown himself to be an idiot. This book is as shallow as Hollywood cut-outs. A waste of money.
I had such high hopes for this book because I think the intended message, curiosity is meant to be cultivated and enjoyed, is very important. Incredibly however, this self-described master storyteller cannot tell a story. The entire effort is a gross violation of the first rule of writing "show, don't tell". The pontification goes on and on, and I kept waiting for some interesting anecdote from the writer's "curiosity conversations". Occasionally there was a spark, but rather than nurture it the author snuffed in out with the umpteenth reiteration of the importance of curiosity. The repetition finally overwhelmed me. I can't remember the last book I put down before finishing, but, alas, this one met that fate.