Why is the sky blue? Is there a more efficient way to carry out this task? How could we develop a product or service to solve this consumer problem?
Curiosity is often most evident in childhood when we are filled with endless questions about the world around us But curiosity is becoming an increasingly sought-after skill in the workplace. Here, we will examine what curiosity is, how it qualifies as a skill, and when and how you can demonstrate it to a potential employer.
One aspect of curiosity involves your interests outside of work. Check out this article for more information on including your hobbies and interests on your resume.
What Is Curiosity?
Curiosity has been defined as “the desire for learning more,” “a mindset of embracing knowledge,” or an “urge to attain more knowledge.” Curiosity often manifests itself in the form of questions and feelings of wonder at discovering something new. If you’re curious about a subject, you don’t just study it because you have to. You do so because you want to.
Why is curiosity a valuable workplace skill? According to the career research platform Zippia, “the most successful professionals are often the people who consistently demonstrate curiosity and a willingness to learn more. Curiosity drives a person towards always improving themselves, their work, and learning more about their field.”
Curiosity can help your career in at least three ways.
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Your skills are strengthened. Curiosity motivates you to learn new skills or build on the ones you already have.
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Inspiration and innovation. Curiosity and creativity are skills that go hand in hand. When you’re curious, you learn things about a subject that you wouldn’t otherwise know. Sometimes, that knowledge falls into place to inspire an innovative solution to a problem.
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You learn how to learn. Learning in itself can be considered a skill. Like any other skill, learning becomes easier with practice. Your curiosity can make you a quick study when your job necessitates learning and retaining new information.
Demonstrating Curiosity on Your Resume
Sure, you could list “curiosity” in your skills section. But there are more subtle ways of leveraging your curious nature.
When to Focus on Curiosity
Many people think of an ideal employee as someone who already knows everything about their job. But in today’s fast-paced, constantly changing technological environment, “knowing everything” is hardly possible. More important is the desire to keep learning and mastering new skills as times, technologies, and techniques change.
Computer sciences, medicine, software development, web development, product development, and researched-based jobs all present a great need for curiosity. You can investigate the company you’re applying to in order to determine whether curiosity is a core value. Look at the mission statement or statement of values on their website. Talk to people who work there if possible.
Curiosity can also be used to flesh out a resume if you’re a student entering the workforce for the first time. This is especially useful if your career field is ever-changing as described above.
Use Alternate Keywords
Some hiring managers may believe that the word “curious” sounds childish. Instead, you can use keywords like “adaptability,” “Inquisitive,” “always seeking improvement,” “innovative,” or “willingness to learn.”
Include a Hobbies and Interests Section
A hobby is something that you do for fun, and an interest is something that you’re passionate about learning more about. This optional resume section is seldom used and with good reason. It should only be included if relevant to the job you’re applying for and the resume checker ats will help you stay focused on the content of your resume rather than formatting which will help you get your desired position.
If a company highly values curiosity, that’s as good a reason as any.
When selecting interests to include, think about which ones most show your curiosity. For example, “Discovering international recipes” displays more curiosity than does “cooking.” Avoid listing anything that could be considered controversial or inappropriate.
You can list hobbies and interests as bullet points followed by a brief description.
Include Entrepreneurial Pursuits
Side hustles and gig work can also be used to show curiosity. Have you ever done work outside of your day job? An entrepreneurial spirit shows both curiosity and a solid work ethic.
How do you include entrepreneurism on your resume? If you started your own company and worked within it for a period of time, it will appear in your Work Experience section. Use the bullet point descriptions to highlight how you started the business, what made you passionate about it, and how you overcame challenges.
Extended stints of gig work may also be listed in the Work Experience section. If you mainly worked for a single entity like Fiverr or Upwork, for example, you might list yourself as a freelancer under the auspices of that company.
If your side hustle consisted mainly of weekend gigs and never became your primary employment, consider listing it in the Interests section instead.
