The Benefits of Curiosity and Openness

So far in my latest series of blogs I’ve discussed the meaning of curiosity and openness, given you tips about how to develop them, and considered their importance.

To round off this month, I want to outline the benefits of curiosity and openness.

Firstly, curiosity.

Active brains

Research has revealed that curiosity is good for brain health.

Being curious and learning about new things encourages the brain to produce new neurons and create new neural pathways.

These processes are associated with boosting memory, language, thinking, attention, and reasoning skills - all of which can help to reduce the risk of cognitive decline.

Strengthened relationships

Being curious about another person involves asking questions to find out more about them.

When you’re genuinely interested in what someone says, it encourages them to be more open, share more, and ask questions in return.

This type of exchange is an effective way to strengthen relationships.

Studies have found that after engaging in both small talk and deep conversation, people who were more curious felt closer to those they spoke to, while the less curious people didn’t.

Coping with difficult decisions

Studies have linked curious behaviour with a greater ability to cope with and handle unwanted emotions, accept conflict, and cope with difficult situations, such as rejection.

This is because when we’re not curious, we rely on assumptions and past experiences to decide how we feel.

Curious people, however, are more likely to gather all the available information before concluding.

A bit of apathy can be good, however, Curiosity relieves boredom. Photo Priscilla-du-Preez Unsplash

Relieved boredom

Curiosity offers the ideal escape from boredom because it leads us to learn about, explore, and try new things; all of which sparks interest, enthusiasm, and forces us out of autopilot mode.

Increased positivity

Being more curious is closely linked with greater life satisfaction and stronger overall mental wellbeing.

Improved problem-solving skills

Being curious is thought to improve problem solving skills because it encourages us to ask questions and be more resourceful.

Seeing things in grey is about questioning things before jumping to conclusions - taking the time to understand subtle details and considering different sides of the story.

Reduced aggression

Research suggests that being curious may improve people’s ability to handle their actions in emotionally charged situations.

Studies have also concluded that being curious daily reduced a person’s likelihood to be aggressive, while lower curiosity levels were linked with an increased likelihood of aggression.

Increased empathy

Being curious about other people can help us to be more empathetic because it exposes us to views and experiences that are different from our own.

Greater self-awareness

Self-awareness is about understanding who we are and why; for example, considering how past experiences have shaped us and taking complete responsibility for how we connect with and relate to other people.

Being curious about ourselves is an effective way to increase self-awareness because it encourages us to ask questions and reflect.

Increased knowledge and work performance

Curiosity can increase our knowledge as it drives us to ask more questions, explore new things, and search for deeper understandings.

Research has also found that a curious mindset makes learning more effective and enjoyable. as it makes us more likely to actively engage with and remember what we learn.

Reduced anxiety

Being curious activates the same areas of the brain as when we accomplish something. It also stimulates the release of dopamine – the ‘feel good’ hormone – which plays an important role in regulating anxiety.

Curiosity can also prevent the brain from focusing on ‘worst-case scenarios.’ New knowledge makes people less anxious, uncertain, defensive, and less reactive to stress.

Now let’s consider openness.

New perspectives

Openness in the workplace gives you access to a wealth of interesting information to help you solve problems and develop innovative solutions. Also, if you work in an environment where everyone is free to share their opinions, you may learn something new from people who think differently than you do. This way, you can view situations from different angles, which gives you a broader perspective on how to deal with issues more effectively.

Work environment

Open-minded managers tend to maintain good relations with their colleagues because they don’t hold grudges or let petty little things bother them. Instead, they focus on finding useful solutions to problems.

Having open communication between coworkers builds trust and fosters teamwork.

Self-improvement

If you’re open-minded at work, you’ll learn something new, expand your knowledge base, and become a better version of yourself. When you share what you're working on with others, they can give you feedback and ideas for improvement.

Improved flexibility

When you’re open, you’re more flexible in your thinking, which lets you adjust more easily to changing situations.

Some risk taking is good! Photo Mark Konig Unsplash

Risk taking

You’ll avoid taking risks if you feel you’re unlikely to succeed.

By opening your mind, you’ll realise that just because something hasn't worked before doesn’t mean it won't work now.

You’ll be more willing to try new things and embrace riskier ideas. You’ll also be more confident in your abilities and take action without worrying about failure.

Enhanced leadership skills

Being open-minded is a valuable leadership quality.

Leaders use their knowledge of the diverse beliefs and backgrounds of employees. They know how to relate to each person and make sure that they’re happy and satisfied.  

Fair treatment

Being open-minded means, you won’t cling to beliefs or prejudices that don’t help you.

Looking at the world through an open view, you learn to treat everyone equally regardless of their gender, race, religion, status, culture and age. This helps build positive relationships based on mutual respect among colleagues as they all feel supported whenever they need it.

If you need further information about these approaches, or any other Resilience topic, please contact russell@theresiliencecoach.co.uk.