Curiosity Didn’t Kill The Cat

By Allison Goldberg

There’s an old adage that “curiosity killed the cat,” insinuating that unwanted investigation could lead one to trouble. For NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, that is correct. But for most people, whose days are spent analyzing spreadsheets and checking out standing desk sales,  curiosity can be a key to success.

Curiosity – especially in the midst of such unprecedented circumstances as a (nearly) global quarantine – can help generate fresh ideas, particularly when everything feels stale. Curiosity levels also tend to predict one’s ability to handle ambiguity, and some experts are positing that continuous curiosity can help one handle an ever-changing, increasingly-automated world.

Most people are familiar with IQ, and its younger cousin EQ has been all the rage as of late. But there’s one more to throw into the mix: CQ, or curiosity quotient. How can leaders raise curiosity in themselves, and instill it in their company culture and reports?

Practice curiosity like practicing mindfulness.

People talk about if the glass is half empty or half full, but they rarely ask where the glass came from. To practice curiosity, try the following exercise, which has three rounds. First, observe one’s surroundings with a sense of optimism, followed by observing the same surroundings with a sense of pessimism, noting how observations of the environment change. Then, for round three, intentionally decide to observe one’s same surroundings with a sense of curiosity. Generally speaking, when one decides to approach with curiosity, something small yet dramatic occurs – they begin asking questions. Think of this practice of approaching with curiosity similarly to how one practices mindfulness. Next, apply curiosity to mundane objects nearby and, finally, begin to approach work products and processes with a sense of curiosity.

Offer learning opportunities that are tangentially related to work, if at all.

At a certain point, do humans lose the ability to learn new things? Or do people simply decide that they don’t want to learn anything new anymore? (In other words, if curiosity didn’t kill the cat, can the old dog learn new tricks?!) And yet the modern, successful company is often in a state of flux, adapting based on consumer needs and desires, as well as technological advancements. To keep a company nimble, its employees must be, too. Therefore, offer a myriad of learning opportunities for employees. Learning how to cross stitch, pickle vegetables, or tuft a rug (not to be confused with cutting one) may not on the surface seem relevant to the business, but encouraging curiosity and skill-building purely for the sake of it will have intangible but monumental ripple effects. 

Create space where employees are allowed to embarrass themselves.

The corporate environment has a reputation for encouraging conformity, but this can be detrimental to innovation. That said, teams should be putting their best foot forward for clients, and generally speaking that means a united front. To support curiosity while maintaining professionalism, managers should make time during internal meetings for junior employees to speak up, for improv exercises, and for sharing so-called “bad” ideas, as they can be the jumping off point for brilliant ones. In other words, creating an internal culture of trust and empowerment teaches colleagues that they can dig deeper and ask bigger questions. Managers can also stoke curiosity by allowing employees access (even if just observationally) to others’ workflows or spaces.  

Many people presume that education ends with a degree, as opposed to being a constant endeavor in people’s lives. Through curiosity, managers and team members can continue to learn, adapt, grow, and come up with more creative solutions. In the words of Special Agent Gibbs, “always look under”. That had pretty much nothing to do with the rest of the article, but it seemed like a pretty curious ending.