5 Is to Build This Critical Leadership Skill — Curiosity

How did that happen? Why are those results the way they are? Hmm, that seems odd, I wonder what is going on. Those all sound like someone who is curious about something they are observing or reading in a report. Curiosity may be one of the most underrated skills any leader can have. That sense of wondering what might be behind what you are seeing, hearing, or experiencing can lead to highly productive outcomes and learnings. How you get to that point comes from using five other skills that help to support the curiosity you already have.

Identify

Is something catching your eye? Or better yet, are you keeping your eyes open for unexpected things, unique happenings, or ideas? Unlocking your curiosity is as much about letting your eyes see more than they usually do, and letting your ear catch your attention frequently. Suddenly, what you see and hear can look and sound much different. Being able to identify new things around you, even in very familiar settings, can be a rewarding, yet sometimes scary proposition. It requires at least a little acknowledgement that this has been happening around you already. That is okay. This is all part of being more curious and willing to learn from it.

Inspect

Once you identify something new, recognize it and ‘sniff’ around it for a moment. Is this something interesting that requires additional time and attention? Not everything will require that, nor should it. Be selective. If you think it may be something that is of interest, but not right now, write it down and come back to it later.

Inquire

This step and the next are closely related. This is where you expand your curiosity further and ask some surface questions to get a better understanding of what the situation may be. Again, this is a great checkpoint to determine if this is something you want to learn more about right now, or if it is a matter that can wait for another time.

Investigate

Ask more questions, and probe deeper. This is closely related to the inquiring step above, but this takes it further and deeper. You will want to get to understand what this newest discovery is all about. Why is it happening, who is involved, what results are coming from it, etc.? At this point, you likely believe that this is more urgent in nature. Investigating the information allows you to begin to form opinions and potential actions that will need to be taken, and when.

Interact

Work with it. Engage fully. You know this is something that is valuable to you, your business, or the team, it is time to jump fully into the situation and create action and define expected outcomes. This is likely the point where you bring in other people to assist with defining the problem further, so that the right activity can begin to address what you have uncovered.

Not every problem, opportunity, or situation always fits with a step-by-step process. But great leaders know that by being curious and using these five skills, they can quickly recognize what actions need to be taken, and with what urgency. Knowing how to identify something that requires further inspection is a critical leadership skill, as are knowing how to inquire, investigate, and then interact. Combined, these can help you be more productive, efficient, and effective in how you lead your team and your business.

How do you see these five Is helping you be more curious in your leadership role?

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