The Impact of Curiosity on Followership

How many leaders do you know who were promoted because they had all the answers? They've solved problems, delivered results, and demonstrated expertise. They became the expert widget-maker. And so they were promoted to lead the widget-makers.

But what happens next to those expert widget-makers? Over time, their collection of experience and information quietly encouraged them to assume they already understood what was happening and how things would turn out. And those assumptions are expensive.

Leaders who believe they have all the answers often make decisions based on incomplete information. They diagnose problems before hearing the full story. They interrupt employees midway through explanations because they think they know where the conversation is going. They implement solutions to problems that don't actually exist. Their followers slowly stop wanting to follow their leader anymore.

I'm working with an organization where I see this playing out intensely. There are a few new hires who are making predictable, small mistakes. And instead of asking how their onboarding is going, instead of wondering if they need more training, the leaders are assuming the new hires are fully trained, making "careless" mistakes and behaving disdainfully. (This is not making life fun for the new hires.)

Curious leaders, however, do something different.

Instead of rushing to conclusions, they slow down long enough to really understand.

Psychologists have long studied a phenomenon known as the "curse of knowledge." Once we know something, it becomes difficult to imagine what it's like not to know it. Our expertise causes us to fill in gaps, make assumptions, and overlook information that contradicts our expectations.

At work, this often sounds like:

• "I know exactly what's causing this."

• "We've seen this problem before."

• "I already know what they're going to say."

• "The solution is obvious."

  
  

Sometimes those statements are true, but often they're not.

The challenge for incurious leaders is that confidence feels productive, effective, and speedy. Curiosity feels slower, more cumbersome, and unwieldy. But curiosity frequently leads to better decisions because it uncovers information that confidence overlooks.

As leadership expert Edgar Schein argued, effective leaders rely heavily on "humble inquiry," the art of asking questions to which they genuinely do not know the answer. Rather than demonstrating expertise, they seek understanding.

Consider a manager whose employee has missed two deadlines. An assumption-driven leader might conclude that the employee isn't motivated, lacks accountability, or needs stronger supervision.

A curious leader might instead ask, "What's getting in the way?" or "What am I missing?" (Open-ended questions are a curious leader's best friend.) The answers could reveal competing priorities, unclear expectations, staffing shortages, process failures, or personal circumstances that were completely invisible from the manager's perspective.

The missed deadline is the same; the diagnosis is different. And because the diagnosis is different, the solution is different.

Research on psychological safety by Amy Edmondson suggests that employees are more likely to share concerns, mistakes, and ideas when leaders demonstrate genuine interest rather than judgment. Curiosity signals that speaking up is welcome. (People can tell when you're waiting to talk. My quip for this is "we don't listen, we reload.")

Curious leaders listen differently. They spend less time preparing rebuttals and more time understanding perspectives. They ask follow-up questions. They seek clarification. They resist the urge to immediately solve every problem. As a result, employees feel heard. And when people feel heard, trust grows.

Trust isn't built because leaders always have the right answers. Trust is built because employees believe their leaders are willing to listen before making decisions.

How are you doing with curiosity? Here's a challenge for you: during your next one-on-one, team meeting, or difficult conversation, try replacing statements with questions.

Instead of:	Ask:
I know what the problem is	How do you see this problem?
What you should do next is...	What do you think the next step is?
I get it.	Tell me more.
You should go talk to...	Who could help you with this?
Here's how we're going to do it	What would you do if I weren't here?

You may discover information that changes your perspective entirely.

The goal of leadership isn't to have all the answers. It's to create the conditions where the best answers can emerge, ideally from your followers. And that starts with curiosity.