Curiosity Is Your Superpower: Why 5-Year-Olds Make the Best Troubleshooters

If you want to be great at troubleshooting, you don’t need a fancy toolbelt or a degree in electrical engineering. You just need to think like a 5-year-old. Why? Because kids that age have one unstoppable weapon in their arsenal: relentless curiosity.

When you channel the endless curiosity of a toddler, you unlock a power most adults have sadly forgotten.

 
Why Is That Like That? No, But Why?

Have you ever been interrogated by a preschooler? It goes something like this:

“Why is the sky blue?”
“Because of how light scatters in the atmosphere.”
“Why does light scatter?”
“Well… because… um…”
“WHY!?”

This isn’t just cute—it’s genius. Every “why” peels back a layer. Every question gets you closer to the root of what’s really going on. That’s exactly what great troubleshooters do.

 
The Danger of Adult Brain

Somewhere along the way, we trade curiosity for assumptions. We stop asking why. We start guessing. We hear “the engine clicks but won’t start” and immediately think “starter motor,” because that’s what some forum told us last time.

But guessing isn’t troubleshooting. It’s gambling.

When we stop being curious, we stop being good at solving problems. Real troubleshooting isn’t about being right on the first try. It’s about being curious enough to get it right in the end.

 
The Internet Method Starts With “Why Do I Think There’s a Problem?”

That’s not a rhetorical question. It’s the first step of the Internet Method because it forces you to pause and observe. You’re not allowed to fix anything yet. First, you notice something’s off, and then you question it.

Start asking like a 5-year-old:

Why did it work before and not now?
Why is this part hot when it shouldn't be?
Why does it only fail under load?
Why do I think that sound is “normal”?
Why am I assuming it’s electrical?
Every “why” strips away lazy thinking. Every “why” replaces assumptions with knowledge.

 
Curiosity Builds a Map

When you ask why, you build a mental map of the system—how it works, what it needs, and how each part fits together. That map is what separates a guesser from a fixer.

Blindly following steps off YouTube is like using GPS without learning the roads. You arrive, but you didn’t learn anything. You couldn’t get back home if you had to.

But when you ask why—at every turn—you’re learning the route. You’re building real skill.

 
Final Thought: Never Grow Up

The best troubleshooters never grow up. They just learn how to turn their curiosity into a process. The Internet Method gives you that structure, but your superpower is your mindset.

So go full toddler. Be annoying. Be relentless. Ask “why” until someone tells you to stop.

Then ask it one more time.

 
Curious about more?
That same curiosity that helps you fix things can help you learn how to fix anything. Check out my book, I Will Teach You to Fix Anything.