Curiosity is what makes leaders, managers and employees stay relevant in their respective roles. Look at any business that is underperforming, they are likely to have a mindset that doesn’t foster curiosity which in turn prevents innovation and new ideas to flourish.

As written about on CIO.com’s article “Why curious people make better employees”,, hire people who are curious as they are very likely to want to learn and improve things. These people too probably have better relationships as the Greater Good Science Center wrote about here.

San Francisco State University also found in this study that individuals who engaged in creative pursuits outside of work had improved job performance and creative problem solving ability than those who had less hobbies and creative pursuits outside of work.

We have found through our work that people who are curious usually have a strong Growth Mindset which we have written about previously, “Leading with a Growth Mindset for Business Impact.”

Here are 5 tips from the team at CFCD to help cultivate a culture of curiosity in the workplace:

1. Encourage employees to foster curiosity with others.
2. Provide consistent and interesting learning opportunities.
3. Expose employees to different ideas by encouraging cross team communication.
4. Encourage employees to cultivate hobbies and interests outside of work.
5. Encourage open dialogue within your teams. At meetings take time for interesting ‘what if’ questions and stay curious with what evolves in these discussions.

Written by Gabrielle Droulers, Director at CFCD

If you found this Blog useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work
• Think on Your Feet®

The post How can a Leader Cultivate a Culture of Curiosity in the Workplace? appeared first on CFCD.

Last week I attended the Sydney Writers’ Festival and was fortunate enough to hear Thomas Friedman, the Pulitzer prize-winning author and New York Times columnist about the age of acceleration in his new book, Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations. He made a very compelling argument that in order to equip ourselves well for future work, we need to adopt five mindsets;

• First: think like an immigrant, because we are all immigrants to the age of acceleration.
• Second: think like an artisan. Don’t settle for being a cog in the machine. Instead take such pride in the outcome that you want to carve your initials into it.
• Third: think like an innovator. Don’t consider yourself a “finished product rather a product in. “permanent beta”, like a software release. Be a lifelong learner and be ready to reinvent, re-engineer or reimagine your job before someone does it to you.”
• Fourth: think like an entrepreneur.
• Fifth: Friedman uses an equation to describe his fifth point: PQ + CQ = >IQ. In today’s world, he argues, it is more important to be passionate and curious than to be merely smart….. “individuals with more P.Q. (passion quotient) and C.Q. (curiosity quotient) are able leverage all the new digital tools to not just find a job, but to invent one or reinvent one, and to not just learn but to relearn for a lifetime.”

The importance of curiosity has been written about lots in recent years including this HBR article, “Curiosity is as Important as Intelligence.” From our work at CFCD we believe, the best part about one’s curiosity quotient is that it can be developed and honed.

How can you develop curiosity?   

Curiosity starts with questions. At work and play ask more open-ended questions. People have rich and interesting stories which we can tap into if we take the time to ask more questions.

Try tapping into content you know little about. George Loewenstein, a professor of economics and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University, suggested in a journal article The psychology of curiosity: A review and reinterpretation that the more we start to learn, the more we want to know.

Listen to understand and without judgement – next time you have a conversation, listen with an open mind to truly absorb what is being said.

Go to people not social media. While social media has its benefits, the most dynamic learning occurs when we interact face to face with people as they help trigger thoughts and actions that in turn inspire curiosity

Read widely and deeply, and explore content outside your comfort zone.

Written by Gabrielle Droulers, Director at CFCD

If you found this Blog useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work
• Think on Your Feet®

The post The Curiosity Quotient: Insights from the Sydney Writers’ Festival appeared first on CFCD.

Last month, we explored the power of starting with purpose when changing career. We challenged you to think, ‘why’ do you do what you do and is there something with a bigger, more purposeful ‘why’ calling you? This month we offer 5 practical tips to help you find meaning in your existing work.

Meaning and purpose at work should never be just defined by a job title or your next promotion.  It is about experiencing something meaningful and of value that your work provides.  When you discover purpose and meaning in your work it leads to a high level of satisfaction, flow and engagement.

‘Why Finding Meaning at Work is More Important Than Feeling Happy’’ by Fast Company quotes from the infamous ‘Why You Hate Work’ New York Times story:

“The survey, which reached more than 12,000 employees across a broad range of companies and industries, found that 50% lack a level of meaning and significance at work.

Moreover, employees who derive meaning from their work are more than three times as likely to stay with their organizations–the highest single impact of any other survey variable they tested. By this account, meaning trumps items related to learning and growth, connection to a company’s mission, and even work-life balance. And the employees who have meaning don’t just stick around longer. They also report 1.7 times higher job satisfaction, and are 1.4 times more engaged at work.”

So how to find more meaning in your own job? Here are a handful of key principles and actions from our experience:

1. Clarify your values –work will be more meaningful if it is aligned with your values. Make a list of things that are most important in your work and life for example, growth, work/life balance, challenge, relationships, creativity etc. Is your your job supporting your values?  The free VIA Character Strengths survey is good resource to help your thinking.
2. Understand why you work: Ask yourself, how…….

am I challenged?

am I contributing to the organisation/team?

am I helping others?

am I creative?

does the work I do make a difference to other people in a positive way?

do I define success?

3. Pay attention to those activities and interests that make you feel energised and work hard to integrate them into your work. Minimise the ones that drain you.
4. Discover and utilise your strengths – tools like the Strengths Profile can help you discover unrealised strengths as one of those you realise.
5. Reach towards your potential – craft your tasks to cultivate greater variety, identity and significance

How else do you derive meaning from your work? We’d love to hear from you. For those interested in reading more on this theme, the Huffington Post has a ‘Meaningful Work’ section.

If you found this Blog useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work
• Think on Your Feet®

The post 5 Practical Tips on How to Find Meaning and Purpose in your Work appeared first on CFCD.

Here at CFCD, we thrive on helping people change career when it’s right for them. Through our deep experience in this area we have found starting with purpose helps make the change right and meaningful.

A great example of this is documented in HBR post ‘From Accountant to Yogi: Making a Radical Career Change’ exploring Leah Zaccaria’s career transition. One of her lessons learnt is ‘Nourish your roots – stay connected to your purpose.’:

“Quit being the person people think you’re supposed to be. Find a way to dig deep into your courageous self to be who you are. Whatever that means as far as exploring your emotions, your identity, your profession, find one version of you that you are always and everywhere.”

So how do you know if a change in career is right for you?

We recommend starting with purpose. Think, ‘why’ do you do what you do and is there something with a bigger, more purposeful ‘why’ calling you?

Simon Sinek, who popularised ‘Start with Why’ is a useful reference when exploring this topic. He has developed the “Golden Circle,” which has three layers to explore:

• Why = The Purpose – What is your course? What do you believe?
• How = The Process – Specific actions taken to realise the why
• What = The Result – What do you do? The results of Why. Proof.

According to Simon Sinek, the fundamental difference between the “Apples” of the world and everyone else is that they start with “why.”

Why is it important to find your WHY?

• It allows you to share your talents and gifts
• You are more likely to make an impact on others
• It increases your quality of life

Some further recommended reading in this area:

• HBR: You’re never done finding purpose at work
• HBR: Change your career without having to start all over again
• Fortune: Changing Career Paths
• Forbes: The Top 6 Actions That Promote Career Success

To find out about our ‘Futureproof Your Career’ program click here

If you found this Blog useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work
• Think on Your Feet®

The post Changing Career – Start With Purpose appeared first on CFCD.

On Wednesday 8^th March it will be International Women’s Day with this year’s campaign theme ‘Be Bold for Change’.

At CFCD we believe diversity and inclusion are key for thriving workplaces. One way in which we support this is through mentoring and coaching for women.

We see a successful mentoring relationship is one in which women grow, develop and learn new skills under the advice and guidance of an experienced professional, either male or female. Our approach to coaching is practical, results-oriented, supportive, confidential, and developmental which delivers maximum benefit for the individual woman and the organisation.

How are you supporting the advancement of women?

This International Women’s Day, we encourage you to take action as exemplified on the #beboldforchange campaign website:

If you found this Blog useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work
• Think on Your Feet®

The post Be Bold for Change appeared first on CFCD.

In the corporate world, many organisations embrace ‘Face to Face February’ as a way to encourage staff to spend quality face to face time with their clients. Here at CFCD we believe it’s just as important (if not more) for managers and leaders to invest in quality face to face time with their team members, without a set business agenda.

Here’s why and some tips to help with the how:

Why invest in making meaningful connections?

There has been a plethora of research showing the correlation between strong connections and health benefits including from Harvard Health Publications which writes “Good connections can improve health and increase longevity.”

Human beings are wired for connecting which Carolyn Tate describes as:

“Connecting is about getting to know, like and trust someone by asking meaningful questions and actually listening to the answers. It’s about sharing your story thereby giving the other person the courage to share theirs. It’s about following up your conversation with some valuable information or a trusted connection to others.”

Connecting with your people helps build trust which is the foundation for a high performing team. Here are some practical tips to help you make meaningful connections this February.

• Think of five people to approach to have a face to face connection with.
• Try getting out of the office and going for a walk and talk together.
• Rather than having a set agenda, organically get to know more about each other through asking meaningful questions.
• Look out for any common interests to help with bonding.
• Ask how you can help them achieve their goals this year.

If you found these articles useful, we recommend the following CFCD services which may be of interest to you:

• Management and Leadership
• Performance Management
• Team Development
• Communication Skills
• Change Management
• Emotional Intelligence
• Career Development
• Mindfulness at Work

The post Face to Face February: Making Meaningful Connections appeared first on CFCD.