Since as early as I can remember, I have had an interest in making a special birthday cake for each of my children when their birthday comes around. When it comes to making birthday cakes, I am no cake boss, but I do enjoy creating something that makes them smile and is also delicious. Building and decorating cakes is outside my wheelhouse so I look to Pinterest and YouTube to teach me how to bring to life these birthday cakes for my children. Most times I don’t have any idea what I’m doing so I ask lots of questions and I don’t feel dumb for asking questions because I really don’t know what I’m doing.
In contrast, at work I can slip into not asking as many questions. I do not want to feel dumb in front of my peers and feel like since I’ve been studying and working in the area of leadership for so long I should know this stuff. Recently Natalie Nixon spoke to a group of leaders at Microsoft and said:
“Practice being a clumsy student”
Natalie Nixon
At first, the idea of being a clumsy student did not sit with me well. When I was a student I did not think I was clumsy. The students that I know today I do not feel are clumsy. Why would we want to be clumsy? The word clumsy is a word she used to evoke emotion and a reaction. A clumsy student is in fact a curious student. Practice being a curious student.
The context of her comment was outside of the work context. I am a “clumsy” student when it comes to making cakes and I get to practice at least 4 times a year. I learned I should have other hobbies and interests outside of work that force me to ask questions and to stay curious. Why? Because the practice of asking questions in a domain outside of work will spread into work and reinforce my ability to stay curious and learn at work.
Whether it is decorating cakes, gardening, sketching, or go-cart racing – find something outside of work and practice being a curious student. Write down in your journal one thing you will practice more regularly to build the habit of curiosity and asking question
