Continuing Professional Curiosity

I was at the dentist this week trying to ignore the discomfort by looking at a TV set sensibly positioned on the ceiling above the chair I was laid back on. For some reason they show nature programmes, presumably hoping these will somehow be a comfort or at least a distraction. On this occasion it was a David Attenborough film on plants growing in a tropical forest. It was quite fascinating, showing using time lapse photography, how a climbing plant sent out tendrils which located a tree branch, entwined themselves around it – and then coiled like a spring to bring the rest of the plant up to that anchor point. I had never heard of or seen this how exactly climbing plants could do this before. What struck me (again), as somebody who has practised as a professional for a long time and lived a full and involved family and social life, how much there is I still don’t know. It made me think about how important it is to be open to learning new things. I wrote a blog about Learning Moments some time ago in which I proposed “Learning new things is a life long experience which makes our journey on this planet so much richer”. I think this is still very true. In our working roles this means preserving an open and enquiring mind, no matter how experienced we may be (or think we are!).

This short blog Curiosity Makes You Smarter – The Benefits of an Inquiring Mind summarises the benefits nicely: “A valuable attribute of great leaders, effective communicators, and professional marketers is curiosity. A curious, inquiring mind keeps us active and engaged. According to research, one of the most overlooked keys to happiness is cultivating and exercising our innate sense of curiosity. Curiosity helps us explore unfamiliar territory and lays the foundation for greater opportunities.”

While this helpful article Inquiring Minds Wanted commences “To develop an inquiring mind there has to be the desire to be curious, and the will to act upon the curiosity. It also involves developing critical thinking skills and having the commitment to pursue continuous learning opportunities.” It proposes that the attitudes for an inquiring mind include:

• “Embrace the “why”: Don’t settle for surface-level information. Ask “why” and “how” behind every fact or experience. Encourage yourself and others to delve deeper, connect dots, and find the underlying reasons and mechanisms.
• Befriend the unknown: Don’t shy away from things you don’t understand. Approach unfamiliar concepts with open eyes and a willingness to learn. Embrace the mystery and see it as an invitation to explore and discover.
• Cultivate a questioning spirit: Never hesitate to ask questions, even if they seem “silly” or challenging. The best questions often arise from genuine curiosity and can lead to groundbreaking insights. Ask open-ended questions that spark discussion and critical thinking.”

It discusses how to evaluate information, practice reflective thinking and advocates continuous learning concluding “adopting an inquiring mindset necessitates a conscious effort to maintain openness and cultivate skepticism, enabling one to pose meaningful questions and engage with complex problems. Embrace curiosity and continuous learning…”

Turning more to our professional world The International Federation of Accountants has published an interesting article Professional Skepticism and Inquiring Mind—Connecting the Standards which commences “These are all discussions and concepts that are pervasive across the standards that guide the accountancy profession.” It interestingly raises this topic as a part of a profession’s regulatory compliance and proposes “Whether having an inquiring mind or exercising professional skepticism skills, or when working with data and information, professional accountants may need to:

• Identify, address, and evaluate various threats to the quality and integrity of the data
• Remain alert for new information and changes in facts and circumstances
• Exercise professional judgment
• Apply critical thinking skills to interpret the story
• Spot trends and irregularities
• Find solutions to problems
• Be aware of how conscious and unconscious bias might impact how the data or information is used, analyzed, or reported on”.

The article explains why these skills are of continuing importance:  “As the profession moves into digital areas and providing sustainability-related services, the importance of having an inquiring mind and of applying skills and competences that involve exercising professional skepticism will continue to be vital. It is incumbent on each professional accountant to have the necessary skills to ask the right questions and challenge in the right areas.”

But this inquiring approach is not just limited to the professions. It applies equally throughout the business world. This excellent Harvard Business Review article The Business Case for Curiosity commences with the observation that “inventions throughout history, from flints for starting a fire to self-driving cars, have something in common: They are the result of curiosity.” It then develops this theme in a business context with three important insights:

• “First, curiosity is much more important to an enterprise’s performance than was previously thought.
• Second, by making small changes to the design of their organizations and the ways they manage their employees, leaders can encourage curiosity—and improve their companies.
• Third, although leaders might say they treasure inquisitive minds, in fact most stifle curiosity, fearing it will increase risk and inefficiency.

It suggests ways to foster curiosity with good business examples and identifies the blockers, recommending and illustrating strategies including:

• Hire for curiosity – Google identifies naturally curious people though interview questions.
• Model inquisitiveness - Leaders can encourage curiosity throughout their organizations by being inquisitive themselves.
• Emphasize learning goals – when asked how he was able to land a commercial airline on the Hudson River, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger described his passion for continuous learning. Even on routine commercial flights every time his plane pushed back from the gate he would remind himself that he needed to be prepared for the unexpected….. As the accident report shows, Sully carefully considered several alternatives in the 208 seconds between his discovery that the aircraft’s engines lacked thrust and his landing of the plane in the Hudson.”

The article concludes “maintaining a sense of wonder is crucial to creativity and innovation. The most effective leaders look for ways to nurture their employees’ curiosity to fuel learning and discovery”.

As Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO from 2001 to 2011, commented “We run this company on questions, not answers”. 

While the missionary and author William Ward observed “Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning.”
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And Albert Einstein said “I am neither clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious.”

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