Years ago, I was involved in a car accident.
Just before the impact, I remember hearing something clearly in my mind:
Brace for impact.
The car hit the wall, the airbags deployed, and thankfully I walked away okay. The police arrived, the tow truck came, and life slowly moved back into motion.
But the moment that stayed with me wasn’t the crash.
It was the question that followed.
Did I really hear that?
And if I did… what was it?
That question didn’t send me searching for a dramatic answer. Instead, it sparked something quieter: curiosity.
Around that same time, I was listening to Bishop T.D. Jakes, and one thing he said stuck with me. He encouraged people not to simply take someone else’s interpretation of scripture, but to study it for themselves.
So that’s what I started doing.
If a verse was quoted in a sermon, I would find it in the Bible and read the full context. I wanted to see it for myself. I wanted to see it for myself.
That curiosity slowly expanded.
I began reading more widely—spiritual books, personal growth books, leadership books. I developed a habit of copying down sentences that stood out to me. If a paragraph sparked a thought, I would write it in my accompanying trigger book. I did the same whenever it made me pause.
Not interpretations.
Not summaries.
Just the words that stopped me long enough to notice them.
Reading this way was slow. It took time to finish a book because I wasn’t rushing through it. Over the years, I read dozens of books this way. Sometimes I read twenty or thirty books in a year. I simply followed whatever idea sparked curiosity.
Recently, I heard someone talking about Adlerian philosophy online. As they explained it, I found myself recognizing many of the ideas they described. Concepts about purpose, growth, and responsibility sounded familiar.
It surprised me.
Not because I had studied Adler directly.
But because curiosity had already taken me down paths where those ideas lived.
Looking back, I realize something important.
The turning point in my life wasn’t finding answers.
It was allowing myself to stay curious.
Curiosity led me to read.
Curiosity led me to think.
Curiosity led me to question what I believed and why.
And over time, that curiosity shaped how I see myself and the world around me.
I used to think growth came from finding the right answers.
Now I think it often begins with being willing to ask better questions.
Because sometimes the question itself is the beginning of the path.
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By Tonia Tyler | #ConfidentStrides | Sweet N Social
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