Curiosity isn’t just a childhood trait — it’s a competitive edge.
Think back to the last time you hit a wall on a project. Chances are, every idea felt like a repeat of the last. Kind of frustrating, right?
Now imagine approaching that same challenge with the mindset of a detective: following every clue, questioning every assumption, and embracing every twist in the case. Suddenly, that creative block looks more like an opportunity.
That’s the power of curiosity. And harnessing it can make your team an absolute powerhouse of innovation.
Curiosity is the driving force behind fresh ideas and breakthrough innovation.
In fact, many of today’s top-performing teams actively cultivate curiosity as a workplace skill. And curious organizations naturally perform better.
But here’s the catch: Curiosity doesn’t just show up on its own.
Sure, natural curiosity comes easily to children. (The next time you’re around a toddler, count how many times they ask, “Why?”)
But as adults, we tend to rely on our years of life experience to fill in the gaps, which means rekindling curiosity might take a little work.
The good news? It’s entirely possible.
How to Rekindle Curiosity in the Workplace
To consistently bring curiosity into your work, you need to create the conditions where curiosity thrives.
Teams that master three core curiosity skills — humility, stretching, and embracing discomfort — see the biggest gains in creativity and adaptability.
Here’s how to bring each one to life:
1. Start with Humility
Curiosity starts with one simple shift: admitting you don’t know it all.
When was the last time you said, “I don’t know” in a meeting? For most people, it’s rare. We’re wired to prove our competence and expertise, but that mindset limits curiosity and creative thinking.
True curiosity requires humility — the ability to set aside ego, ask questions, and explore new perspectives.
Studies show higher levels of humility (and, by proxy, curiosity) increase life satisfaction. So, to become more curious, start by focusing on humility.
Curiosity doesn’t mean you have to know everything. It means you want to learn more. And that simple shift makes all the difference.
How to Build Humility on Your Team
- Ask More Open-Ended Questions: Encourage your team to start conversations with “What if…” and “Why not …?” These phrases open the door for exploration.
- Create Psychological Safety: When employees feel safe to admit they don’t know something, curiosity thrives. Leaders can model this by being transparent about their own learning process.
- Seek Diverse Perspectives: Invite voices from outside the usual group of contributors. New perspectives often lead to new breakthroughs.
Why It Matters: When your team approaches projects with humility, they become detectives, not defenders. Instead of proving themselves right, they seek the best answer. That’s where true innovation happens.
2. Stretch Your Limits
Humans are wired for safety and consistency, and newness often feels unsafe. So we often tend to stick with what we know.
But growth doesn’t happen in the comfort zone. And curiosity inherently means challenging the usual — aka “stretching.”
At Exos, “stretching” means being motivated to seek knowledge and new experiences. When you encounter an unknown or novel situation, you have to stretch yourself to seek out newness and embrace discomfort.
Stretching our capabilities by learning new skills, taking on unfamiliar roles, or tackling “stretch projects” activates our curiosity. This “stretch zone” is where the magic happens.
Actively choose the scarier path over retreating to your comfort zone. Stretching requires courage.
As it pertains to curiosity, think of it like this: The only way to discover something new is to take a step in a new direction.
How to Stretch the Mind at Work
- Take On & Assign “Stretch Projects” — Try out projects that push you beyond your day-to-day responsibilities. Ask your employees how they’d like to grow their capabilities, and put them in positions to practice. Ideal stretch projects create just the right amount of discomfort to spark growth. This “stretch zone” is essential for flow, as well.
- Experiment With the New — Don’t just take the old processes at face value. Look to innovate. What new idea, process, or experience might improve how things go around here?
- Cross-Train the Brain — Encourage employees to learn a new skill or explore other departments. Exposure to new concepts triggers creative thinking, so don’t be afraid to let people explore. Pro tip: Try creative team-building rituals to bring in some novelty.
Why It Matters: Build a culture of curiosity just like you would train a muscle: through small, consistent efforts. Over time, this “mental strength” increases problem-solving skills, adaptability, and resilience across the entire organization.
3. Embrace Discomfort
As you slowly stretch outside your comfort zone, you might feel some internal resistance. Voices of doubt could creep in.
That's normal. Acknowledge the voices, then lean in.
This is embracing: a general willingness to not just accept but also to welcome the novel, uncertain, and unpredictable nature of a curious life.
Here’s one way to think about this. We all know having a plan is key to success. But, inevitably, unexpected things arise. We can either let those things knock us off track, or embrace them and rise to the challenge.
Say you're asked to do a keynote presentation at a conference. Your slides are on point, the story is rock solid, when an hour before you present you find out the podium isn't set up for you to see your notes.
Do you walk away? Look for a creative solution? Trust in all your practice and believe you'll crush it anyway? Embracing the problem will define how you’re able to roll with it.
You can also hone your embracing ability through some retroactive reflection. At the end of the day, ask yourself:
- How did my day go today?
- What was something unexpected that came up?
- How did it impact my plan for the day?
- How did I respond?
- How can I better prepare for the future?
How to Embrace Discomfort in the Workplace
- Reframe Discomfort as Progress — When things feel hard, it’s a sign of growth. Teach teams to see discomfort and disagreement as a necessary part of the process. Acceptance is a key piece of embracing discomfort.
- Implement the 15-Minute Rule — Feeling stuck? Commit to 15 more minutes before giving up. Often, that final push is where breakthroughs happen.
- Normalize Struggle — Growth requires friction. Help employees see discomfort as a sign of progress, not failure. You can do this by celebrating effort, not just results. Be vulnerable about your own struggles to help your team members feel psychologically safe.
Why It Matters: The ability to embrace discomfort separates the good from the great. It’s the mental equivalent of pushing through the last rep of a workout — and it’s where the biggest growth happens.
Why Curiosity is a Competitive Edge
Fostering curiosity to be more innovative helps teams reframe challenges as opportunities, leading to more creative solutions.
Teams that approach their work with a sense of wonder and exploration consistently outperform those who don’t.
Here’s why:
- Better Problem-Solving — Curious teams reframe challenges as opportunities, leading to more creative solutions.
- Higher Adaptability — When faced with change, curious teams are more resilient. They ask, “What can we learn from this?” instead of, “Why is this happening to us?”
In an era of constant change, companies that thrive are the ones that stay curious. If you want your teams to stay ahead of the curve, it’s time to put curiosity at the center of your strategy.
Bottom Line: Train the Curiosity Muscle
Curiosity is a practice.
By building skills in humility, stretching our limits, and embracing discomfort, we can reawaken that childhood spark within our careers.
The payoff? More creativity, higher performance, and a deeper sense of fulfillment.
To level up your organization’s curiosity, talk to us about Exos’ Human Performance Coaching.
