Curiosity!!
I definitely feel that the most successful teams or companies are the function of curious people they have. The curious folks are the ones who depict the zeal and fire to do anything and overcome everything.
They are the ones with an impulse to seek new information and experiences and explore best possibilities. This completely changes the way the teams perform because this team has the power to adept to uncertain market conditions , all external pressure and actually come up with more creative solutions.
One of the things I have always noticed with a few employees when I speak is they talk about reaching a “saturated stage”. When dug deeper, I sense a lack of curiosity from them any further. Its very different than when an employee joins a company. Their curiosity (self development) oscillates just like a sine wave. Goes up when they are new, goes down over a period of time, goes up again with a new project, goes down if continuing that project, goes up again with a promotion, goes down again doing the same stuff.
Unless the person is any more curious the self development definitely stops. As much as the company, manager, team can help a person grow, it is also equally or more on the employee to continue being curious.
It’s exactly like a skill one develops because of their interest and the company, manager and team can only act like a stage to display that skill.
Ofcourse, the stage must be all able and should have all equipments, tools, etc everything needed to make that a solid performance at its very best.
Curiosity is underrated!
Every org/ team should do things to innate curiosity.
- Hire for Curiosity. We need more people with this skill clearly. Ask more leading questions to test this naturally.
- Acknowledge and reward curiosity. This must be encouraged- something more top down and even peer-peer level. Start acknowledging and rewarding people for this.
- Every quarterly goals you set, set something for learning newer things. This is a direct empowerment to self.
- Have a good stage with all the facilitating equipments for that solid performance. Join that org. Which lets its folks explore new things and foster curiosity.
- Keep asking Why? Reason out with oneself for everything around.
There is a classic book recommended by Hari on Stay Hungry Stay Foolish that is apt for this situation!