Curiosity didn’t kill the cat

Something amazing has happened over the past year. My oldest daughter has developed the ability to read. This has opened up a completely new world for her. She’s now reading everything, all the time, whether it’s books, magazines, signage, cereal boxes, you name it. And you know what? It’s really wonderful to see this process. She’s always been very interested in the world around her, and she’s now unlocked a completely new way of approaching her environment. It really sparks and stimulates her curiosity.

Why am I sharing this with you? You’ve probably heard the saying “curiosity killed the cat,” which serves as a warning that investigation, or further experimentation, isn’t needed. Moreover, it could even be dangerous. I wholeheartedly disagree with this. I consider curiosity one of three crucial skills in innovation: courage, curiosity and connection. In a previous column, I already talked about courage. Without courage, we get stuck. But without curiosity, there can be no innovation.

Curiosity is a strong desire to know or learn something, translated into action. It’s crucial to survive – not just in innovation or high tech, but in any industry. It speaks for itself that curiosity is essential to develop your skills, to expand your abilities. It’s the starting point for learning new things. I see a lot of this curiosity around me. Many developers are very interested in new technical developments, in keeping their skill set up to date. New technologies are emerging every day; the pace of development is extremely high. It requires effort and curiosity to keep track.

But the most important thing we should be curious about is people. The people you work for and the people you work with: your customers and your colleagues. Let’s talk about customers first.

It’s crucial to have a sharp understanding of your customers, the people who’ll buy and use your product. This knowledge shouldn’t just be summarized in statistics and business cases. It should be about real people, with their hopes and dreams, their feelings, their desires. Worst case, there’s no or very limited customer knowledge in a company. In a slightly better situation, there’s some customer knowledge, but it’s mainly present in the form of requirements, statistics and calculations. In the ideal situation, this picture is completed and enriched by inspiring information and details about the daily lives of the actual people using your product.

Why? Because it serves to create empathy with your customers, which will lead to better decision-making during product development. Every single day, developers and engineers make many decisions. Having a solid foundation of customer knowledge will positively influence your work, even if it’s about the smallest details. Curiosity leads to empathy, which leads to better products. Curiosity requires you to act. Don’t expect all this information to automatically end up at your desk. Get out there and ask questions about your customers.

Curiosity and empathy also apply internally in your organization. Innovation is a collaborative process whereby a complex problem is solved in a new and creative way. It flourishes when different ways of thinking collide. This makes innovation also a highly social process. Diversity increases creativity and improves complex problem-solving, due to the different views and perspectives of the people involved. But a company can only benefit from this diversity when everyone feels safe to speak up and confident to contribute.

Curiosity is a critical starting point for success. All too often, assumptions and biases are blocking the way for curiosity, for empathy. Be genuinely curious about the people around you; try to put yourself in their shoes. Don’t take things for granted; ask questions. Make people feel heard and invite them to participate.

So, does curiosity kill the cat? I don’t think so. Curiosity helps the cat to have more knowledge and understanding of the world around her. Curiosity helps her to develop empathy for others, to have an open mind, to connect. Curiosity is the starting point not only for developing better products but also for making the world a better place.