Is curiosity all it’s cooked up to be?
A quality that everyone lauds has its complexities.
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An organisation that hires curious people stands to gain a lot, but it must also be prepared to accept trade-offs, says the writer.
PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTO
The Economist
In any discussion about the human qualities that will matter to employers in an AI-inflected future, a few traits recur: taste, judgment, empathy, expertise. One of these bingo-card words is curiosity. Curious people are more likely to explore the contours of new technologies, run the argument and master new skills. If you want a workforce that can adapt to rapid change, inquisitiveness is a superpower.
It’s almost impossible to be against curiosity, which is why candidates tend not to brag about being totally uninterested in the world around them. But when everyone agrees on something, it’s usually worth wondering if there’s another side to the story.