Hi, have you ever looked at something that everyone
else accepts and wondered, what if there's a
better way? Many years ago, I was preparing students
for actuarial exams. The traditional approach
was pretty straightforward. Read the material,
study the formulas, and if time, work problems
and take practice exams. There was nothing wrong
with that approach, but I became curious. What
if we focus more on practicing rather than passive
reading? And a professor friend of mine went
one step further and asked, what if the difficulty
of the questions could adjust to the student's
skill level? What if students spent less time
on questions that were too easy or impossibly
difficult and more time in that zone where real
learning happens? And at that time, These were
not answers. These were questions. Questions
that eventually led to an idea. And that idea
became a company called Coaching Actuaries. And
one of the tools that we developed was called
ADAPT. The goal was simple. Help students practice
in a way that was consistent with their current
skill set. In short, it was focused practice.
And looking back, I realized that coaching actuaries
did not begin with expertise. It began with curiosity,
a willingness to challenge assumptions, wondering
whether things could be done differently, a desire
to explore possibilities that did not yet exist.
And I've noticed this pattern occurs over and
over. The people who create and invent, improve
and innovate, are often not the people who have
all the answers. They're the people who are asking
questions. They notice assumptions that everyone
else takes for granted. And they become curious
enough to imagine alternatives. Sometimes growth
comes from working harder. But it has been my
experience that growth also begins by asking,
what if there's a better way? So as you go through
your day, Consider this. What assumption have
you stopped questioning? It might be about your
work, or maybe a relationship, maybe your faith,
or even yourself. Maybe a little curiosity is
all it takes to discover and adapt to a fresh
possibility.