Relevance follows audience

Metaphorically speaking

Research means purposefully exploring an intriguing idea. But intriguing to whom? Certainly, intriguing to you—but only to you? If you are the only one interested in reaching your destination, your path might become pretty long and lonely. In simple terms, no one would care much about what you might find.

Instead, consider first identifying an audience that you would like to contribute to. You might share their values, be able to get behind their mission, or simply deem their objectives worthy of your support. What are their questions? What challenges are they trying to overcome? Once you know your audience, it becomes easier to identify questions that are relevant independently of your individual preference. But there is more about relevance than simply checking a box—it can be a source of energy for you to keep going. When in doubt whether your motivation is strong enough for the big journey, consider borrowing some motivation from those who would love to see you succeed.

(This is a preview section. The full chapter on this topic continues with the sections “Rough coordinates”, “Train of thought”, “In essence”, “To reflect”, “Two travellers’ tales”, “Devil’s advocate”, and “How to tackle”.)