Coaching for Leaders

760: The Kind of Curiosity Leaders Often Miss, with Shannon Minifie

Listen Later
Shannon Minifie: Box of Crayons

Shannon Minifie is the CEO of Box of Crayons, a learning and development company that helps unleash the power of curiosity to create connected and engaged company cultures. They are the organization behind the bestselling book The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier. Shannon and her team recently released a report along with the Harris Poll titled Navigating a Fractured Workplace: How Relational Curiosity increases engagement, trust, and productivity.

Of course, you’ve heard that being curious and coach-like will help in leadership. But sometimes the very thing we think we’re doing well is actually getting in the way. In this conversation, Shannon and I explore the kind of curiosity that leaders often miss.

Key Points
  • 5-6 hours of the average workweek is lost to the fear of making mistakes.
  • A strong majority of leaders say employees are expressing a desire for more feedback, and a majority also say that people are unable to receive hard feedback.
  • Relationships are the core of these conflicting messages. Without a relationship of trust, helpful feedback often doesn’t land that way.
  • Intellectual curiosity helps us learn what we don’t know. Relationship curiosity helps the other person learn what they don’t know.
  • Ask yourself: what is my goal in asking this question?
  • Rather than asking a question that starts with a “why,” consider asking a question that starts with a “what.”

    • The 7 Essential Questions:

    1. What’s on your mind?
    2. And what else?
    3. What’s the real challenge here for you?
    4. What do you want?
    5. How can I help?
    6. If you’re saying yes to this, what are you saying no to?
    7. What was most useful for you?
      8. Resources Mentioned
      • Navigating a Fractured Workplace: How Relational Curiosity Increases Engagement, Trust, and Productivity.
      • Interactive Learning Preview: Invest in the Power of Curiosity
      • The Coaching Habit* by Michael Bungay Stanier
        • Interview Notes

        Download my interview notes in PDF format (free membership required).

        Related Episodes
        • These Coaching Questions Get Results, with Michael Bungay Stanier (episode 237)
        • How to Ask Better Questions, with David Marquet (episode 454)
        • The Way to Be More Coach-Like, with Michael Bungay Stanier (episode 458)
          • Discover More

          Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic. To accelerate your learning, uncover more inside Coaching for Leaders Plus.

          ...more
          View all episodesView all episodes
          Download on the App Store
          Coaching for LeadersBy Dave Stachowiak
          • 4.8
          • 4.8
          • 4.8
          • 4.8
          • 4.8

          4.8

          1,391 ratings

          More shows like Coaching for Leaders

          View all
          The Look & Sound of Leadership by Essential Communications - Tom Henschel

          The Look & Sound of Leadership

          1,163 Listeners

          Teaching in Higher Ed by Bonni Stachowiak

          Teaching in Higher Ed

          368 Listeners

          HBR IdeaCast by Harvard Business Review

          HBR IdeaCast

          168 Listeners

          How to Be Awesome at Your Job by How to be Awesome at Your Job

          How to Be Awesome at Your Job

          1,030 Listeners

          7 Minute Leadership by Paul Falavolito

          7 Minute Leadership

          93 Listeners

          Worklife with Adam Grant by TED

          Worklife with Adam Grant

          9,163 Listeners

          Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence & Leadership Communication Style by Laura Camacho

          Speak Up: Develop Your Executive Presence & Leadership Communication Style

          97 Listeners

          Maxwell Leadership Executive Podcast by John Maxwell

          Maxwell Leadership Executive Podcast

          379 Listeners

          The Modern Manager by Mamie Kanfer Stewart

          The Modern Manager

          187 Listeners

          Inside the Strategy Room by McKinsey & Company

          Inside the Strategy Room

          167 Listeners

          No Bullsh!t Leadership by Martin G Moore

          No Bullsh!t Leadership

          124 Listeners

          The Anxious Achiever by Morra Aarons-Mele

          The Anxious Achiever

          572 Listeners

          A Bit of Optimism by Simon Sinek

          A Bit of Optimism

          2,204 Listeners

          Coaching Real Leaders by Harvard Business Review / Muriel Wilkins

          Coaching Real Leaders

          676 Listeners

          HBR On Strategy by Harvard Business Review

          HBR On Strategy

          81 Listeners

          HBR On Leadership by Harvard Business Review

          HBR On Leadership

          169 Listeners