How do we raise kids today during these exponential times?

Should they learn a second language… in a world of instant translation?

Should they ever memorise any fact… in a world of ubiquitous Google, wikipedia, apps etc?

Will University even exist in 20 years’ time?

Which is more important? Learning to code or learning sports?

As a father of two young girls, these questions are on my mind.

I think despite which subject matter we teach, curiosity is extremely important.

Curiosity is something that is innate in kids and yet something that most people lose over time.

In a world of Google, robots and A.I., raising a kid that is constantly asking questions and running “what if” experiments can be extremely valuable.

This is mostly because running constant experiments is fundamentally necessary on the path to success.

As kids we used to ask a lot of questions, we were inquisitive, but as we grow up, the level of our curiosity decreases.

As adults, we equate asking lots of questions as not being smart enough, a slow-learner and sometimes just plain annoying to those not asking.

And then what do we do?

We keep quiet, we stop asking, we comply, we become like everyone, we go with the flow.

What we miss in all this is that, if we stop asking questions, we stop learning.

When we stop being curious, we stop growing.

The way I think about it, if you want to invent, if you want to do any innovation, anything new, you are going to have failures because you need to experiment.

I think the amount of useful invention you do is directly proportional to the number of experiments you can run per week per month per year.

I constantly ask my girls “what if” questions.

And if they ask, “What if…?” I encourage them.

Help paint the picture… And try to help them create an experiment to test that hypothetical situation.

What if humans could fly?

What if humans could go to the moon?

What if we could defeat apartheid?

What if humans could eliminate poverty complete?

What if you could write a blog?

What if you could touch the lives of humanity with your hidden art?