The following is a guest blog post from by Ton Dobbe – Chief Inspiration Officer, Value Inspiration
Every week I interview entrepreneurs and experts from around the world to share their big idea about new forms of value creation and the potential we can unlock when technology augments the unique strengths of people to deliver remarkable impact.
A key trait to become remarkable
I got inspired by the big idea behind the book ‘Cracking the Curiosity Code’; hence I invited author Dr. Diane Hamilton to my podcast. We explore why curiosity is such a key trait to develop in relation to innovation and dealing with top business issues. We do a deep dive on the four factors that impact curiosity, and what to do to start growing the curiosity level inside your organization.
The thing that triggered me most from my interview with Diane – ‘Curiosity is the spark that leads to motivation and to drive, and for you to get anywhere with communication, critical thinking, leadership, creativity, teamwork, engagement, you name it, all the top issues that leadership struggles with.’
Why did this trigger me? What’s the bigger value I see?
My background is in enterprise software industry, and I believe curiosity is critical in every aspect of a business software company. It’s critical at the start when you develop the big idea and make it a reality, but it’s possibly even more important as you grow and evolve. It’s about staying at the top of your game, ensuring your customers will continue to see you as the ‘go-to-source’ that makes them successful.
To achieve that you needs to constantly stretch yourself. Chris Dayley once said ‘To reach a goal you’ve never before attained; you must do things you’ve never before done.’
To me that’s the essence of it.
What’s the bigger question / opportunity that raises?
It’s the question: ‘Why do certain companies become and stay remarkable, and why others at some point drop the ball.’
I believe the answer to that is complacency. It’s so easy to get trapped in the treadmill. That’s not only an opportunity missed to make the most of our lives and business, it’s also dangerous. As technology and business advances, so do the expectations of our prospects and customers.
It’s that moment where curiosity plays a fundamental role to stay relevant and continue to stand out in our category. That’s why its key to keep asking critical questions like “Why is everyone doing it that way? Why can’t it be done differently? What are the conventional believes that stop us from progressing. What if we’d break with those believes and make it better? Everyone believes it’s impossible, but if it were possible, how could we do it?
Asking those type of question could help reveal opportunities bigger than yourself.
That makes curiosity so powerful – Growing that trait opens your horizons. It allows you to raise critical questions, to challenge the status quo, to explore.
And the good thing is: Everyone can do this. We don’t have to wait for someone else to pick up the responsibility. The solution is often right in front of us – we just fail to see it. It just requires us to be curious.
It all start with that very simple question: ’Why?’
Listen to the big idea behind Cracking the Curiosity Code and why it has the potential to transform the way we can drive innovation: Value Inspiration Podcast with Dr. Diane Hamilton