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Get Curious: Three Traits Of Inclusive Leaders

Forbes Coaches Council
POST WRITTEN BY
Rachel Bellack

In this time of rapid and unexpected change, adopting an inclusive leadership style is important for team success. An inclusive leadership style is one in which all team members feel valued and a sense of belonging. They feel that they are treated fairly and respectfully and are confident, supported and inspired.

Research has shown that teams with inclusive leaders are higher-performing, more collaborative and make better decisions. Increases in employee engagement also had a positive effect on reducing the cost of absenteeism.

For these and many other reasons, inclusive leadership is a must for the leader of the future. Of course, most leaders have a desire to be inclusive and can follow a set of prescribed behaviors and specific actions to get there. That is a great start. However, for real sustainable change to occur, behavior change is only the first step.

Leaders are told that they need to be curious, open, flexible and step outside of themselves. Yet this requires a fundamental shift with little insight on “how” to affect this change. This is an area that my company and others like us focus on: using the skills that actors and improvisers use to help leaders discover how to achieve greater flexibility, openness and empathy. This is one of the keys to inclusive leadership.

So, beyond awareness, how do leaders begin to make this shift?

Start with curiosity.

We often hear that curiosity is an important trait for leaders of the future. This makes sense, as no one can predict what specific skills will be needed for the changing world. By cultivating curiosity, leaders have more flexibility to deal with the unknown.

In the world of acting, improv or any creative field, curiosity is what drives participants to create. Actors, when creating a character must start by being curious and asking questions about their character. These skills can be applied to business to encourage inclusivity through curiosity.

What is curiosity?

The concept of curiosity can be broken down into three elements that are actionable and measurable.

1. Openness

The element of openness is one that most leaders would say they possess. It’s valuable to understand what openness truly means. Often, when leaders say they are “open,” what is often meant is that they are “tolerant.”

Openness and tolerance are actually opposites. Tolerance means “My way is the right and best way, but I’ll put up with your wrongness without too much of a fuss." I “tolerate” a stone in my shoe because I don’t want to stop and remove it, but that doesn’t mean I’m open to it being there.

Openness is the ability to receive, without judgment, another’s thoughts, feelings, beliefs and behavior. It’s not about agreeing, it is about inquiry: How can I learn more about a perspective I don’t yet understand? How can I make the connections to see how this makes sense in someone’s world, even if it doesn’t make sense in mine? The idea of openness has a welcoming aspect, and without it, the experience of value and belonging does not occur.

To cultivate openness, question rather than judge by your own beliefs. Actors are often called on to play characters who are unlike them, and that may be in sharp contrast to their personal beliefs. Non-judgment and curiosity about the character's choices are crucial to success. As leaders, when judgment creeps in, acknowledge it, then get curious about the person’s experience.

2. Perspective-Taking

The idea of seeing the world through a lens other than one's own can be daunting. We know what we know and operate from our personal experience and beliefs.

So how can a leader step outside of themselves and look through a lens they may not be familiar with? This is something an actor does whenever they take on a role. An actor looks at the character's values and emotions —who they are at the core rather than just what they do. What does the character value and what emotions are they experiencing?

To enhance perspective-taking, seek to understand the values and emotions of others and how they relate to their actions and behaviors. Values and emotions are familiar and starting from the place of familiarity can make it more comfortable to step outside ourselves and see through the lens of another.

3. Coping With Ambiguity

Certainty is one of the basic human needs. Dealing with ambiguity can provoke discomfort at best and panic at worst. Being confronted with different and unfamiliar beliefs, cultures or attitudes can rock people’s sense of certainty to the core. With certainty, there is an ability to be “right” and have the illusion of control. Ambiguity requires being OK with not knowing.

Not knowing what will happen next, what action to take, or how to react can bring on fear and defensiveness. It is these emotions that can cause people to label, categorize and judge others. These judgments then create certainty, even though they may be incorrect. I had a client who would do anything to avoid ambiguity and regain certainty. He would rather feel certain about something that may be incorrect than to be in a place of not knowing. This happens unconsciously in the quest for certainty.

For actors and improvisers, in particular, comfort with ambiguity is not only a necessary quality but a part of the joy and challenge. Certainty and perceived control stifle creativity and innovation. Improvisors thrive in ambiguity because anything is possible.

Leaders who are comfortable with ambiguity have the advantage of being flexible enough to adapt quickly and creatively to changing circumstances. To become more comfortable with ambiguity, reframe the concept of uncertainty from something negative into one where there are infinite possibilities and opportunities.

Inclusive leadership styles are the future. Start now by flexing your curiosity muscle and practice openness, perspective-taking and innovation through ambiguity.

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