CURIOSITY Didn't "Kill the Cat..." ...but it DID re-energize childhood "wonder" by Marc LeVine

Curiosity is having the guts to ask a question that no one else might ask. Curiosity is the willingness to try something different and see what happens. Curiosity is having the chutzpah to open a door that says, "Do Not Enter" and find out what is inside. Curiosity is a true characteristic of leadership because real leaders challenge the status quo and take calculated risks to grow to succeed where others fail.

Curiosity is a Success Driver

Curious people want to learn and try new things they can use to creatively devise better ways to solve new and old problems. This trait goes together with critical thinking skills, which compels us to look more deeply into situations to better understand them. Being curious often drives us to further investigate and validate facts and knowledge we can apply to our daily decision-making. It is the jet fuel that drives us to open closed doors and see what possible and unique solutions are available behind them.

Curiosity Lives between Unawareness and Boredom

We are not all equally curious about everything. Curiosity may be related to only those things we already have some interest in and want to learn more about. And curiosity may be something we can further develop and refine based on our desire to learn more. Conditions that may affect one's curiosity level can be based on either how much we already know or do not know about a subject of interest. "Know-it-Alls" are much less curious about their own topics of expertise. Conversely, those who "don't know what they don't know" (about a particular topic), may not even know what to be curious about. Only those in the middle, who know enough about something and want to seek even more understanding about it are usually the most curious.

Make Being Curious a Team Sport

When we surround ourselves with curious people, we tend to become more curious ourselves. In fact, the curiosity becomes contagious, as like-minded people enjoy collaborating on topics of mutual interest and solving problems as a team.

Make Being Curiosity a Habit

Curiosity should be considered habit-forming. Often, when we investigate one thing, other related areas of interest develop, and we race to "take the stairs:" climbing ever so higher a towards a greater knowledge and advanced degree of understanding. Leaders maximize their leadership potential by making it their business to enrich their position by allowing curiosity to surface, routinely and guide them to better decision-making.

According to Emma McGuigan, global lead for intelligent platform services at Accenture and chair of the board of Avanade, the company’s joint venture with Microsoft: "you have to be seen as being curious as to asking more questions, reading, learning, and really thinking differently about how to ideate and evolve (to be a successful leader.)"

Listen to Marc's latest interview on The AutomationBlog Podcast with Shawn Tierney.

Marc LeVine is a graduate of Syracuse (NY) University with a degree in Industrial Psychology, Marc is currently Talent Acquisitions and Learning and Development Lead at Thermo Systems. His prior employment includes senior Human Resources and staffing industry management roles with Edgewood Properties in Piscataway, Brickforce Staffing in Edison, InfoPro Inc. in Woodbridge and Plainsboro and Harvard Industries in Farmingdale, NJ, a former Fortune 500 company. He also served as Director of Human Resources for New Jersey Press, the parent company of the Asbury Park Press, Home News and Tribune and WKXW-NJ101.5. Earlier in his career, Marc served as Director of Career Services and Placement at Union Technical Institute in Eatontown and Neptune, NJ. In addition, Marc owned and operated Integrity Consulting Associates, a Human Resources consulting firm in Freehold for 11 years. Reach Marc at [email protected]