Curious Leadership

Almost all breakthrough discoveries have had curiosity in common. From Velcro to the lightbulb, rescue tube to the iPhone, somebody somewhere wanted to know more about something and pushed the boundaries of possibility.

There is an undisputed link between curiosity and creativity. Curiosity was the physician at Great Ormond St Hospital wondering how to reduce casualties during patient transfer. Creativity was him inviting Formula One pit stop crews to come in and observe the hospital procedures and make recommendations (which, by the way, resulted in a 50% decrease in errors).

Dr George Land tested creativity/curiosity in children and found that this peaks at age 5 and declines into adulthood unless consciously exercised. Never ending “Why’s” can be extremely frustrating – especially for parents, when the average 3 year old will ask 300 questions a day. An exasperated parent or teacher may even reach the point of saying “Stop asking questions” to get some respite, but where curiosity is stifled, creativity is quashed.

A ban on questioning seems to be something that continues into adulthood… with almost every manager saying “Don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions”. This is the corporate speak for “Stop asking questions!” Like school, employers reward answers not curiosity. When someone doesn’t answer as fast as we want, in the way that we want, question after question is often fired out; offering no room for thought, evaluation or information processing.

Organisations believe that they engage their people and encouraging questions… but out of 3000 people surveyed, these are the results:

“Feeling curious” at work is something that many would dismiss as entry level or confuse with “learning the ropes”, but many of us now are tasked with innovating our industries and remaining ahead of the competition. How can we do that without looking beyond what we currently do? Continuing to explore limits and push our boundaries is essential to future proofing our business.

Many leaders profess collaboration, saying “my door is always open”, but this doesn’t mean psychological safety is there. ?One respondent in the survey was quoted as saying “We need leadership minds to be opened, not doors.” Psychological safety – partially rooted in wellbeing, which is another hot topic – fosters a platform where colleagues of all levels feel safe and able to share their thoughts, question why, how, where, or what. Of course, there remains a correct way to question or challenge, but leaders need to cultivate the environment of curiosity and questioning. If the leader believes that their open door is all that is required for questioning curiosity, what then are the barriers that our teams feel when it comes to asking questions?

Common barriers to colleagues asking include:

????????????????????????????Fear of looking stupid

????????????????????????????Don’t get a real answer

????????????????????????????Apathy - psychologically resigned

????????????????????????????Judgement/criticism

Why leaders answer rather than asking questions:

????????????????????????????Don’t want to look vulnerable

????????????????????????????They want to be smart

????????????????????????????Be in control

????????????????????????????Elevating their position (my team is new, or my team is junior)

????????????????????????????Complacency/Attitude/Environment & hierarchical culture (this is how we do it)

How does Leadership play a part in Inclusion & Innovation?

The Process of Innovation

We need the sense of wonderment, wanting to know more to drive creativity in our teams. As leaders, we need to facilitate, create and encourage this.

When curiosity is triggered, we are:

????????????????????????????Less likely to fall prey to confirmation bias

????????????????????????????Less likely to stereotype

????????????????????????????Face challenges with creativity

????????????????????????????More engaged and motivated

????????????????????????????More open to communication

????????????????????????????More team performance

????????????????????????????Less conflict

We reawaken curiosity by asking:???

?????????????????????????

*Note that “Why” can sound confrontational; resulting in a combative or overly passive colleague. Many “Why” questions can be reframed – for example, “What led you to do it this way?”

Simple Steps for Creating Curiosity as a Leader

????????????????????????????Build a fearless culture – be okay with getting it wrong sometimes

????????????????????????????Inquisitive inquiry is welcomed

????????????????????????????Who is asking is irrelevant – all ideas are beneficial

????????????????????????????Non-judgemental context

????????????????????????????Respond in a positive and productive way

????????????????????????????Learn to say thank you for questions

????????????????????????????Teach them how to ask good questions

????????????????????????????Model curiosity - ask open, board questions eg “What questions do we have” vs “do you have a question”

????????????????????????????Reward learning as well as performance

????????????????????????????Hire for curiosity

Lastly... learn from your 5 year old self. Reawaken your curious mindset.