Wonder Why!!

The other day, I happened to meet a lady from the education industry who sought an appointment with me to sell one of their pioneering products meant for Kids and Parents.

Our conversation started with basic Q&A wherein she threw some questions at me wanting to know answers from a parent perspective and gradually leading her way to introduce the product she was meant to sell.

Now I would not like to dwell on the details of the product nor her perfect Sales-women-ship! But rather come right to the important part of the conversation which struck a chord!

“CURIOSITY”, she continuous to talk, is what we would want to harness amongst our kids. They are natural observers, experimentalists and answer seekers however as parents, do we have the requisite skills and knowledge to harness that?? That very moment I could not help but think of my childhood – when I raised barrage of questions at my parents and just when their patience to answer them ran out – the final answer to “Mummy but why??” was a definitive “Because the sky is soo high!”… Sometimes such innocent humour also become family legacy!! J

Getting back to our conversation; clearly I was intrigued by the thought shared through that simple question she asked. Definitely not enough intrigue to convince me to buy the high priced product (to her utter disappointment!) but nevertheless it exactly represented my own battle at workplace to find answer to this question – “How to spark an attitude amongst employees to always keep learning and stay curious??”

It just got me thinking – does lot of the answers lie in their childhood?? To blame it on our education system which rather is known to kill curious minds by creating diligent minds stuck to exam curriculum rather than embracing learnings from life?

Does Curiosity have an age?? Or rather just needs a nudge from dormancy in the right environment??

How to build curious minds?? – is it just about giving books to read Or much more?

Given my own Curiosity, I actually had lot of such questions coming in my mind.

As an HR professional – our efforts today are channelized more than ever to drive and manage organizational transformations. For past pace and high growth organizations – it is dire necessity to align employees to changes as fast as possible not just in interest of organizations but their own as well!

To me CURIOSITY – is one’s ability to change and having a high LEARNING QUOTIENT – implies your ability to contest both sides of a case!

Why would I say that??

Imagine the last time you went through a huge change in your life – battling Loss of a loved one; change of profession; Relocation. I bet no decisions are tough to make than making those choices that transpire from the moment of change. What all don’t we do to make the most informed decisions??

Is it not right to think that “Moment of Change” sparks the CURIOSITY within us – for us to delve into critical thoughts and to be able to transition / transform successfully and make the change a reality! It is in this moment of change that we begin seeking answers to pertinent questions.

Isn’t this how “CURIOSITY” manifests?? Asking relevant questions and seeking answers!!

When we ask questions –

It is always the “WHY” / “WHY NOT” that denotes the purpose or core objective that questions our TURTHs

Followed by the “HOW” that further breaks it down to define a logical methodology

Answers to “WHAT”, “WHEN” questions follow through automatically funneling its way to the actual end point – where Change manifests!

Above questions are relevant from creating organizational strategies to managing everyday household budgets; be it for a group of people working together or an individual to himself / herself. Right from a student making choices about his education / course preference or a young professional making choices of occupation to the grey haired scholars figuring out life’s calling and battling mid life crisis – all individuals at various stages of life are at turning point of Change and make choices.

Like the width of the Funnel Top – it is always the “WHY” / “WHY NOT” that’s most ambiguous, needing more time span to figure and also susceptible to clutter that may cause an imbalance if not deliberated enough.

However once the “WHY” is deciphered, it is only then the “HOW” that fits the WHY to the context making it relevant and logical.

“WHAT”, “WHEN” make the “HOW” a reality to view the Change in Action

Imagine this Funneling thought process taking place in minds of every person before making Choices?? – it is our opportunity to deep dive and seek answers and get “CURIOUS” because if we don’t, our unexplored and unanswered questions can potentially derail us just like the funnel toppling and spilling over when the flow through it is not controlled and checked.

Over a period of time we will come to realize a pattern that our “WHYs” would tend to get answered basis our preferred value system most aligned to our personality and hence making the whole Funneling thought process an effortless exercise. So next time you are in a moment of Change faced with making a Choice… get CURIOUS and WONDER WHY!!.. (Not only because the sky is so high!!)