The Romanian rights to THE CURIOSITY CODE pre-empted by Publica!

Posted on

We are very happy to announce the first foreign sale for Dr. Alexander Puutio’s THE CURIOSITY CODE: Stay Curious or Stay Stuck in a World of Constant Change to Publica in Romania! We are especially glad the publisher saw such an instant and strong match with the title. The deal was closed by Martti Berner at Elina Ahlback Literary Agency Agency in co-operation with our co-agent Antonija Radić at Corto Literary.

The Curiosity Code is a practical guide to thriving in a world of constant change by teaching readers how to use curiosity, not rigid career ladders, as the engine for reinvention, resilience, and meaning.

 

THE CURIOSITY CODE: Stay Curious or Stay Stuck in a World of Constant Change

What if the very playbook we’ve been handed for success – grit, passion, specialization – isn’t just incomplete, but entirely counterproductive to a fulfilling life?

✓ A no-bullshit blueprint for a more meaningful life—by Finland’s most curious export that has taught leaders at Harvard, Columbia and NYU Stern

✓ In 2024, dr. Puutio reached 1,5 million readers with his columns on Forbes, Fast Company and Psychology Today, and speaking invitations from Adobe to Thomson Reuters

✓ Bold Nordic take on reinvention and permission: you don’t need approval to change paths – you just need curiosity

They told us to specialize and stick with it. But in a world of constant reinvention, that advice now feels like sabotage. In The Curiosity Code: Stay Curious or Stay Stuck in a World of Constant Change, I draw on research from 600+ CEO interviews, insights from teaching at Harvard, and a life built across law, economics, AI, and VC backed startup world to uncover the simple truth behind resilient, fulfilling lives: they’re built in loops, not ladders. This book reclaims curiosity not as a childlike trait, but as a serious strategic edge in an age of AI and relentless uncertainty. Blending cognitive science, leadership insight, and surprising lessons from slime molds to Leonardo da Vinci, this is a call to those who sense there must be more to life, and a guide to finding it.

The Curiosity Code: Stay Curious or Stay Stuck in a World of Constant Change
70,000-80,000 words. Full manuscript in May 2026.

Reading materials:
English Book Proposal, Sample Chapters 1 & 2, Pitch, Author Bio

Rights sold:
ROMANIA: Publica

About author


Alexander Puutio

Teemu Alexander Puutio, PhD, is a Harvard lecturer, perennial student with his third PhD in the making and a writer whose work spans leadership, curiosity, and purposeful reinvention in the age of disruption.

With a background that bridges law, economics, and behavioral science, Alexander has held senior roles at the United Nations, and in Boston Consulting Group before he took on teaching and research full time. He currently teaches at Harvard, where his work focuses on leadership in uncertain environments and decision-making in the face of rapid change. As a part of his research on success and life satisfaction, he has interviewed over 600 global CEOs and executives. He is a writer at Forbes, and his articles have appeared in Psychology Today, Fast Company, and TechCrunch with more than 1.5 million readers reached in 2024. His public speaking and teaching portfolio spans media, institutions and private companies from Adobe to the Rockefeller Foundation, and he is a sought-after voice on the future of work, the limitations of grit, and the underleveraged power of curiosity. His work fuses sharp insight with warm provocation, making him a trusted guide for high-achievers looking to reinvent. Originally from Finland, Alexander now lives in New York with his wife and three sons. He drinks too much decaf diet coke, writes to learn, and is proudly building a career that looks nothing like a straight line.

Photo credit: Julia Neganova

Read more

Bibliography

Related news