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Let the Power of Curiosity Inspire You to Reach Your Life and Leadership Goals

An excerpt from my upcoming new book, Ingaging Leadership Meets the Younger Generations

by Evan Hackel

Curiosity is the force that has led human beings to conquer polio, to fly to the moon, and to discover the new world. But curiosity is not only a force that has changed history. It is also something that can transform your life in ways like these. It can . . .

  • Turn you from a pretty good student into an academic standout.
  • Lead you to discover your best career and higher purpose for your life.
  • Inspire you to live in new places and lead a more adventurous life.
  • Discover and use new technologies and tools.
  • Make you a “life learner” with an insatiable hunger to keep growing.
  • Improve your fitness level, health, and athletic performance.

But Those Are Only a Small Part of What You Unlock when You Empower Your Curiosity

Yes, curiosity can transform your personal life in the ways we describe above. But when you release its power to transform the people in your organization, even more remarkable changes will happen. Assets like the following become part of your culture and happen organically . . .

  • You and your team learn about and use cutting edge technologies, simply because you are curious about them.
  • You talk to your clients and customers in an ingaged way because you really want to know what they are doing and how you can help them.
  • You keep a close watch on what your competitors are doing.
  • You investigate new business opportunities in new locations, simply because you really want to know.
  • You deeply study metrics and results that shed light on what you are doing – again, because you really want to know.
  • You are constantly on the lookout for new products, new customers, new vendors – and all things new.

And it all starts with curiosity. But how can you trigger that kind of organization-wide urge to learn and inquire? Here are some proven strategies.

Unleash and Showcase Your Personal and Passionate Curiosity

“Model the behavior you would like to inspire in others” is a familiar leadership axiom. It simply means that to encourage specific attitudes and behaviors in the people you lead, you should start by practicing them yourself. For example, a kind executive will cause kindness to extend through the ranks of his or her organization, leading to a kinder overall atmosphere system wide.

Similarly, you can encourage curiosity in others simply by being personally curious about the world. As a leader at any level in your organization, you can encourage curiosity by . . .

  • Exploring everything that is new in your sector, in your region and in the wider world, and then talking about it in every appropriate setting – from meetings with your executive team to one-on-one sessions with the people you supervise.
  • Speaking openly and enthusiastically about what you are exploring and learning. Your enthusiasm about being curious is a force that can spread throughout your team and organization – but only if you let your passion show.
  • Making it clear that research and inquiry are part of your job, not something you hide away or do in your off-hours. When you show you are an executive who learns, other people will follow suit.
  • Taking part in executive development programs, certification programs and other activities that demonstrate your eagerness to learn and grow.

Make Research Projects Part of the Work You Delegate

Assigning research projects to your team is one effective way to encourage curiosity in your organization. And with the right kind of curious mindset, you can position more projects as opportunities to learn. You can say, for example . . .

  • “I would like your task force to investigate and recommend the more forward-thinking systems for inventory control and report back to us” instead of, “Go pick a good inventory management product.”
  • “Please talk with representatives from our five biggest customers and discuss five things we could be doing better for them” instead of, “Go find ways to sell more to our customers.”
  • “Please visit the business locations of five other companies in our sector, see what they are doing, and report back to us on facility best practices” instead of, “Call a real estate agent and find some new facilities we can consider.”

You get the idea. Curiosity is more than just something you do. It is a way of doing things which, when practiced enthusiastically and consistently, will change your organization for the better.

Cultivate the Ability to “Listen to the Listening”

This means that when others are speaking, you should focus not only on the words they say, but on deeper questions that can include . . .

  • “Why are they saying what they are saying?”
  • “What other external factors could be motivating them to say this?”
  • “Could there be hidden reasons why they are saying this – or reasons there are certain things they are not saying?”

Action Step: Talk to people across functional lines: to the people who report to you, to the people who report to them, to your coworkers and to the people who report to them. Discuss questions that have been on your mind, like “Why do you think our company does this?” Listen to what you hear, see where the conversations go, and keep on asking still more questions.

Find Good Ideas Hiding among the Bad

I am often amazed that a “kernel” of value can be found hiding in a group of unusable, flawed ideas that someone expresses. Or even hiding in one “Big, Bad Idea” that is simply not usable at all.

So instead of tossing aside the whole idea that will not work, learn to look curiously for good, usable aspects that can be set aside and put to work. This is yet another way to tap the power of curiosity in all your interactions with other people and get them to contribute the best they have.

Assign Work to Multi-Functional Teams Whenever Possible

I have found – and I am sure you have discovered too – that multi-functional task forces can do a better job of completing many projects than can teams made up of people with similar skill sets.

When a group of salespeople are charged with the task of increasing sales revenue, for example, they will come up with a sales solution. When a group of social media marketers are charged with the same task, they will devise a social media strategy. And when a group of programmers is given the assignment, they will suggest a programming/software solution.

But sparks really start to fly when you bring together members of different disciplines, with different skill sets, and assign them to a project. (If you can, describe that project as “fact finding,” since those words spark a curious outlook.)

When members of different divisions who have different disciplines coalesce and work together, curiosity will start to infect and inspire people across your organization.  So my advice to you is, break down the silo walls and bring people together.

Action Step: Look at the work and projects that are being completed by your department, division, or other structural unit. Is there a way you can bring in more participants from other units or divisions – in effect, transform it into a multifunctional team?

Assign Leadership Opportunities to People who Have Shown Curiosity

Curiosity will be most powerful when you democratically reward curious people for the work they have done and the things they have learned. In other words, awarding a “Most Curious Employee” award will probably demotivate more people than it motivates. You want everyone to be encouraged to inquire and learn.

However, there is nothing wrong with rewarding your most curious people with new projects that will allow them to become even more curious and to learn and grow more. You can bring the leader of a research project into your office, for example, and say “Do you think the strategies you learned on your last project about improving customer service training could be used to improve the training we give to our service reps? . . . can you put on your thinking cap about that?”

The idea is to identify the team members who have shown the greatest aptitude for curiosity and find ways to keep the ball rolling.

Action Step: Privately, identify the people everywhere in your organization who have shown the greatest enthusiasm for learning. Without marginalizing other people, is there a way you can cultivate these top curious performers, so they express even more of their curiosity and draw other employees into the process?

Talk about the Results of Curiosity throughout Your Communications and Activities

In your town hall meetings with employees, talk about the results that curious people achieved. Do the same in the videos and employee profiles you post on your company website and elsewhere. Write about the results of curious activity wherever you can – in the newsletters you send to your customers, on your company blog, in the customer profiles you post on your website, and even in your sales materials.

Don’t hide your curiosity or what it has achieved. If you talk about it enthusiastically and openly, you can further help the power of curiosity spread company wide.

Also, reward curiosity and learning with awards, commendations, and other public shows of appreciation. You want everyone in your organization, as well as your clients, vendors, and others on the “outside” to know you are a curious organization. It is up to you to tell them . Who else will?

Stress Team Culture and Team Structure

A team of curious individuals can be a powerful and transformational force in your organization. There is an old, slightly over-used saying, “There is no `I’ in the word TEAM.’ Is this saying overworked? Yes, but as is usually the case with any saying that is overused, there is more than just a kernel of truth in it.

Let me reshape it slightly so that it says, “There is no one standout star in a team of curious peers.” Everyone is curious together, everyone learns together as the team transforms your organization.

It is a beautiful thing to see.

In Conclusion . . .

As you have read this chapter, I hope that you have gotten excited about curiosity, and eager to expand its use in your work and your organization. There are few outlooks that can deliver more amazing results quickly. It is a critical part of what I call Ingaged Leadership, and it “speaks” especially compellingly to younger employees.

I’d encourage you to get excited about the power that curiosity has to transform your organization in positive and powerful ways. I hope that after you have read this chapter, you will want to get it working for you.

About Evan Hackel

Evan Hackel is the creator of Ingaged Leadership, the author of the book Ingaging Leadership Meets the Younger Generation and is a thought leader in the fields of leadership and success. Evan has been instrumental in launching more than 20 businesses and has managed a portfolio of brands with systemwide sales of more than $5 billion.

 

Evan is the CEO of Ingage Consulting, Delta Payment Systems, and an advisor to The Learning Network. Reach Evan at ehackel@ingage.net, 781-820 7609 or visit https://www.evanspeaksfranchising.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evan Hackel
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