Curiosity beats certainty

Susan Charlesworth

15 Aug 2025 — 2 min read

Jim Lovell, Commander of Apollo 13, dies aged 97

When I ask people what holds them back from sharing ideas or solving problems creatively, the answer I hear most isn’t “I don’t know how”. It is

“I’m afraid of being wrong.”

The biggest roadblock to creative problem-solving isn’t a lack of intelligence, it’s fear. Fear of looking silly, of making a mistake, of breaking from the norm.

Astronauts don’t have the luxury of letting fear stop them. During training, they’re encouraged to keep asking questions. They’re taught to act in uncertainty, even without a perfect plan.

That’s what I call an Explorer’s Mindset:

Staying calm when you’re not sure what to do
Questioning assumptions
Trusting that you can figure it out

Last week, just after I wrote about Apollo 13 in my newsletter, I learned that Commander Jim Lovell passed away at the age of 97. His leadership during one of NASA’s most harrowing missions was the embodiment of the mindset we’re exploring this week: creative, calm, and courageous under pressure .

Lovell’s legacy is a powerful reminder of what happens when fear of being wrong doesn’t hold you back, but instead you trust that you will figure it out.

So my question for you this week:

Think of a time you held back, maybe an idea you didn’t share because it felt risky or uncertain. What stopped you?
What could you say or do next time to lean into that hesitation and trust your ability to figure it out?

And if you want to know more about applying this mindset, my free Explorer’s Toolkit has simple prompts and activities to help you and your team practise:

👉 Download the Explorer’s Toolkit

Next week, we’ll get into Step 3: Open-Ended Challenges, and why practising for the unknown can be the most valuable training you’ll ever do.

For now, I hope you're enjoying the summer and keeping cool!

Susan

If you haven’t yet seen my TEDx talk on this, you can watch it here:

🎥 Let’s teach our children to problem solve like astronauts | TEDxBrighton

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