How can Financial Managers develop curiosity to adapt to new challenges?

1 Why curiosity matters

Curiosity is the desire to seek new information, experiences, and perspectives. It is a key driver of innovation, creativity, and problem-solving. Curiosity can also help financial managers cope with ambiguity, complexity, and volatility in the financial sector. By being curious, you can challenge your assumptions, discover new opportunities, and improve your performance.

2 How to cultivate curiosity

Curiosity isn't a trait that you either possess or don't; it's a skill that you can develop and practice. As a financial manager, you can cultivate curiosity by asking open-ended questions to uncover hidden insights and generate alternatives. Additionally, exposing yourself to different perspectives, cultures, and disciplines can help broaden your horizons and learn from others. Pursuing interests or hobbies outside of work can stimulate your brain and boost creativity. Finally, experiment and test new methods, tools, or approaches in your work to learn from trial and error and find better solutions.

3 How to apply curiosity

Curiosity is not only a mindset, but also a behavior that financial managers should apply to their daily work. To do this, you should analyze data with curiosity and ask what the numbers mean, imply, and reveal. This can help you uncover patterns, trends, and anomalies that inform decisions. Additionally, communicating with curiosity involves more than just telling; it means listening, inquiring, and empathizing to build rapport, understand needs, and collaborate effectively. Lastly, leading with curiosity is more than just directing; it involves inspiring, empowering, and supporting to foster a culture of curiosity, innovation, and learning.

4 How to overcome barriers

Curiosity can sometimes be hindered by barriers such as fear of failure, time pressure, and confirmation bias. To overcome these obstacles, you should accept failure as a learning opportunity, make time to pursue your curiosity, and challenge your confirmation bias. Recognize that mistakes are an inevitable part of the process and use them to improve. Schedule some time in your calendar to explore and learn, set goals for yourself, and give yourself a reward for being curious. Seek out information that contradicts or questions your assumptions and be open-minded enough to change your mind.

5 How to measure curiosity

Measuring curiosity can be challenging, but it is not impossible. You can gauge your level of curiosity and its effect on your work through indicators such as the number and quality of questions you ask and answer, the amount and diversity of information you consume and produce, and the frequency and outcome of experiments and tests. Additionally, you can use tools or methods to measure your curiosity, such as self-assessment with a questionnaire or scale like the Curiosity and Exploration Inventory (CEI) or the Curiosity Scale (C-Scale), feedback from peers, managers, or clients, or a portfolio of your curiosity projects or activities.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?