Warren Buffett’s Path: Authentic Curiosity as a Compass
- Editorial Team
- May 17
- 3 min read
Updated: May 28
We are flooded with secrets of success formulas. Wise Warren Buffett 90+ offers a refreshingly simple truth: real greatness isn’t about force. It’s about authentic curiosity and alignment.
As a child, Buffett wasn’t told to study stocks — he just did.
He read balance sheets the way others read novels.
He wasn’t forcing discipline. He didn’t manufacture motivation. He simply followed what fascinated him.
He didn’t chase opportunity. He focused on what already made sense to him.
He wasn’t pushing — he was pulled and absorbed.
Buffett’s brilliance was born out of deep alignment. That’s authentic curiosity: unforced, unpolished, but utterly alive.
During a recent talk, Buffett gently dismantled the myth of the 10,000-hour rule popularised by Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers.
“I don’t believe in that book that talked about spending 10,000 hours at something,” he said. “I could spend 10,000 hours at tap dancing and you’d throw up if you watched me.”
As always, his humour disarmed — but the truth landed deeply. Warren isn’t against effort — he is against forcing efforts into the wrong direction.
His advice? Doing what you’re naturally drawn to — and staying authentically curious about it.
Warren means that deep level curiosity that sticks. Curiosity that asks questions and keeps returning even when no one’s watching.
Are You Following Your Authentic Curiosity?
Here’s the Calmfidence check-list:
Is this a curiosity that keeps circling back, no matter how far I drift?
Does this topic lights me up or am I just ticking boxes?
Would I still do this if no one applauded?
Do I feel more like myself when I do this?
Do I keep coming back, even when there’s no reward in sight?
Do I feel pulled or pushed by my daily work?
Does time dissolve in flow when I am engaged in this topic?
Am I energised, depleted or just making myself busy?
Because authentic curiosity doesn’t burn you out — it builds you up, leading the way to living your purpose.
Curiosity As a Compass
Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman, a leading researcher on creativity and personal growth, describes authentic curiosity as the foundation of self-actualisation. It guides you toward the very environments, conversations, and challenges that stretch your potential.
Dr. Susan David, Harvard psychologist and author of Emotional Agility, reminds us that real purpose emerges from what we value and feel, not what we’re told we “should” pursue.
Purpose, she says, “is built, not found” — and curiosity is the raw material.
Does Purpose Change? Yes — If You‘re Growing!
Purpose isn’t static. It moves as you do. What fascinated you in your twenties may no longer fit in midlife — not because you were wrong, but because you’ve evolved.
Purpose matures. It’s not fixed — it’s fluid. But the thread running through it is often the same: a sense of resonance.
Think of Buffett. He didn’t switch from investing to opera singing. But he refined his purpose — from chasing returns to mentoring the next generation. Still curious. Still aligned. Just deeper.
What once sparked joy may someday feel complete. And that’s not failure — it’s growth.
Authentic curiosity will nudge you toward your purpose, your next step of evolution. Just as Buffett’s purpose shifted from multiplying wealth to mentoring others, yours may also refine — deepening with age and insight.
Purpose isn’t a destination. It’s a dance with your deepest curiosity. The kind you don’t have to fake, force, or filter.
As psychologist and organisational behaviour expert Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman notes: Curiosity is “a reliable internal compass.” It leads you into environments that ignite your potential, often before you know where it’s heading.
And like Warren Buffett, if you follow authentic curiosity, you’ll eventually find yourself exactly where you were always meant to be.
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