The ‘Why?’ Kid

How constantly asking ‘Why?’ as a kid made me the curious adult I am — and how it’s helping me investigate burnout

Recently, I was zooming with a friend in the Netherlands whose four-year-old daughter, Zoë, was playing in the background. Zoë is whip-smart and observant, and despite the distance between us — compounded now by the travel restrictions necessitated by the pandemic — I love watching her grow up.

When I mention this, my friend rolls her eyes and smiles.

“She’s going through a ‘why?’ phase right now. She can spend literally hours following me around, asking ‘but why, mommy?’ to every single answer I give, no matter how finite I might think that answer was.”

“Fun times.” I smile. I know exactly how frustrating that must be: because I was the exact same kid.

I describe it as a healthy dose of curiosity — my parents might have described it as utterly maddening. In any event, as a child, I loved asking ‘why’. I loved knowing more, delving deeper, pushing further in order to better understand the fuller picture.

I get that it’s annoying, being asked the same question so many times the term ‘ad nauseum’ takes on new meaning. But as a little kid, it was a simple way of getting more information (and — yes — more attention, positive or otherwise). My parents are intelligent, knowledgeable…