CURIOSITY
“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.” - Voltaire
‘Don't think about why you question, simply don't stop questioning. Don't worry about what you can't answer, and don't try to explain what you can't know. Curiosity is its own reason. Aren't you in awe when you contemplate the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure behind reality? And this is the miracle of the human mind - to use its constructions, concepts, and formulas as tools to explain what man sees, feels and touches. Try to comprehend a little more each day. Have holy curiosity." – A. Einstein
”Be curious, not judgmental.” Walt Whitman
A core capacity of leadership is the ability to navigate uncertainty, as many if not most situations a leader will need to tackle do not lend themselves to being resolved by metrics, algorythms or predictable best practice rules.
The mindset that can help a great deal in navigating uncertainty, innovating past the current situation, or experimenting with new approaches is Growth Mindset (as defined by Carol Dweck). Growth Mindset is the ability to suspend one’s expertise or past achievements and allow oneself to stay in learner mode. When we approach things with a growth mindset we can be truly curious, rather than defensive of our own current limitations because we experience the world around us and other people as sources of ongoing learning and growth. Not as threats to our ego’s attachment to a particular title, expertise or past success.
Questions are a powerful tool at our disposal to deepen our curiosity and our capacity for innovation and stronger decision making
Practice for curiosity and growth mindset
Use your favorite search engine to search out the opposite position on a subject you feel passionately about. Read about the opposing viewpoints. Try to read at Level 3 or Level 4 of listening.
Use your favorite search engine to search for a poem that captures the essence of how you may be feeling about some important aspect of your life or your work. See what emerges. Discover new poets. Discover the leadership wisdom of poems.
The Choose To Be Curious website is an interesting resource for food for thought on curiosity in many different contexts https://lynnborton.com/