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While we profess to value curiosity as a culture, far too often we consider practicing curiosity to be almost self-indulgent. We conflate it with navel-gazing, day-dreaming, or knowledge for its own sake rather than something truly practical–and that’s a crying shame.

In reality, curiosity is absolutely foundational in any success, both on an individual level and an organizational one. Curiosity is far more than just being wrapped up in your own thoughts; it’s a way to find new solutions, spark new ideas, and connect with others in a genuine, human way. That last point is truly underrated, too, so we’ll say it again: curiosity is crucial for fostering real connections with the real people that we work with to find our own success.

Make Their Day is one of the four pillars of the FISH! Philosophy, and is all about the small moments and actions that can surprise, delight, and inspire those around us. Today, we’re going to talk about how curiosity isn’t just a way of finding novel solutions to problems; when we focus our curiosity on the feelings and ideas of others, as well as ourselves, it’s a wonderful way to build human connections and Make Their Day, every day.

Curiosity shows genuine interest

Making someone’s day doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be a big party or some elaborate surprise; when someone’s in a difficult place or having a tough day, just being listened to can be enough to totally turn them around. This is why we always stress the importance of Being There for your team.

When you approach someone with real, genuine interest about their day, their problems, their successes, and their overall wellbeing, people feel less alone and isolated. They feel like they’re part of a community that supports them, and are more likely to support those around them in turn.

To Be There is to start from a point of real curiosity: To be genuine when listening to someone, you must have a sense of curiosity about their feelings–and when you do, you’ll find that positivity and connection proliferates throughout your workplace. 

An open mind can provide validation

Having a sense of Play can really help us shine in the workplace. We can talk for days about what Play means in the FISH! Philosophy, but at its core, it really is just practicing curiosity. To Play is to make space for novel ideas, for outside-the-box thinking, and for the most impractical suggestions to be shared without fear of judgment. We listen to everything with a true sense of curiosity, knowing that even the most implausible ideas can have nuggets of wisdom or potential that would otherwise go unnoticed if the idea was dismissed outright.

Little in life makes us happier in the moment than simply feeling like our ideas are being heard and validated. When we put ourselves out on a limb to make an unorthodox suggestion that we think could have strong potential, we’re opening ourselves up to criticism or dismissal–and hearing someone say something as basic as “that’s interesting; tell me more” can absolutely make our days.

Self-reflection can create genuine connection

Curiosity isn’t just limited to having an open mind about the world around you–it can also be focused inward as a form of self-reflection and discovery. The ways we interact with the world (and people) around us are a direct result of our emotional state and attitude, and when we allow our internal thoughts and feelings to automatically influence our external behavior, we can sometimes create situations where others are less-than-excited to be around us.

Think about it: If you yell every time you’re feeling angry or upset, people will shy away from you or walk on eggshells in hopes of not “setting you off.” But if you treat your emotions and behavior with a sense of curiosity–taking a moment to ask yourself “Why am I feeling this way? Do these emotions fit the intensity of the situation? How would I like to respond?”–then we can short-circuit those automatic impulses and Choose An Attitude that builds the connection and community we want. After all, what makes someone’s day more easily than showing kindness and support when they’re expecting anger or vitriol?

Ideas to Reflect On:

• Do you find yourself feeling curious about others’ emotions or feelings? How can you harness that curiosity to Be There for them during times of success and struggle?
• How does your workplace create judgment-free spaces for brainstorming and ideating? What can you do to show curiosity in novel solutions rather than dismissal?
• Do you feel approachable in the workplace? If not, how can getting curious about your own emotions lead to changes in your outward demeanor?

Want to Implement FISH! in your organization?

Are you a leader?  Do you train others?  Do you want others to be leaders?

Charthouse Learning, the creator of the world-famous, award-winning, FISH! film is offering an in-person, 2-day workshop, interactive Train-the-Trainer lead by our Senior Trainer.

During our time together you’ll learn how to:

• Share the motivation and foundation of FISH!
• Introduce the FISH! film with the four practices.
• Present the invitation to apply the practices in everyday interaction with others.
• Build a sustainability and reinforcement program to transform the culture.
• Pick up tips from other FISH! Philosophers and develop a strategy to embed the practices into the DNA of your culture.
• Create an energized organization that is the “first choice” for employees, faculty, staff, leaders, and customers.

Plus, you will learn how to create a workplace where people choose to “be and bring” their best self everywhere, every day.

At the FISH! Train the Trainer you will:

• Dive Deep: Discover The FISH! Philosophy – full of “A-ha!” takeaways and perspective-shifting realizations.
• Transform: Make the four FISH! practices – Play, Be There, Make Their Day and Choose Your Attitude – an essential part of your professional and personal skill set.
• Discover: Learn practical ways to apply the FISH! practices to improve teamwork, service, leadership, retention and performance.
• Develop: Brainstorm strategies to embed The FISH! Philosophy into the DNA of your culture, strengthening your mission, vision and values.
• Collaborate: Learn and laugh with like-minded folks from across the globe.

Click Here for More FISH! Train the Trainer Information

Click Here for More FISH! Starter Kit Information

Whether you work in business, education, or healthcare, FISH! offers accessible, intuitive solutions to empower your workers, bring your team together, and introduce Play into your organization. We invite you to contact us today at 800.695.4534 or info@charthouse.com to speak with our cultural specialists, who will help you find the right FISH! Philosophy solutions that will nurture your organizational culture and motivate your team!

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