Curiosity + Questions
“In spite of how perspective you might be and how well you think you know the other party, you actually don’t know what’s going on for them.”
page 58 from the book, Connect - Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, and Colleagues by Carole Robin and David Bradford
This quote is a reminder to how we utilize our curiosity. What we believe we might know about another person might just be our strong interpretation and opinion. If we find ourselves in the validation side of curiosity, the questions we ask and the data we gather is only self-serving. If we are in the discovery side of curiosity, the questions we ask and the data we gather will deepen the connection, make the relationship more intimate, and possibly help us better understand the other person.
One thing we can do to make sure we are empathetically curious is to examine who our questions are serving. Us or them?
Through the questions we ask others are we:
Supporting the other person’s ability to story share?
Supporting an opinion we have, a story we want to share, or advice we want to give?
