The Power of a Curiosity Calendar
Building Future-Relevant Teams
Welcome, Uplevelers! In today’s edition, we dive deep into the concept of the Curiosity Calendar—a transformative approach to fostering curiosity, collaboration, and future relevance in your organization. Drawing from a recent SmartCast conversation, we’ll unpack what a curiosity calendar is, why it matters, and how you can implement it to uplevel your team’s culture and performance.
What is a Curiosity Calendar?
A curiosity calendar is a thoughtfully curated schedule of events and activities designed to spark curiosity, uncover knowledge blind spots, and trigger meaningful conversations among employees.
Unlike traditional “fun” HR activities, these are deliberate, strategic interventions aimed at:
Encouraging cross-team interactions
Stimulating intellectual growth
Fostering innovation and collaboration
Why Do Organizations Need a Curiosity Calendar?
Orchestrated Serendipity: In today’s distributed and remote work environments, where spontaneous “water cooler” moments are rare, curiosity calendars create intentional opportunities for employees to connect, share ideas, and discover new perspectives.
Cross-Functional Engagement: They break down silos by bringing together people from different teams, functions, and seniority levels.
Strategic Objectives: These activities are not just for entertainment—they’re designed to:
Drive innovation
Enable nonlinear growth
Sharpen intellectual prowess
Build a culture of continuous learning
Employee Value: Participation is voluntary and value-driven. Employees engage when they see personal and professional growth opportunities.
How Does a Curiosity Calendar Work?
Careful Theme Selection: Topics are adjacent to work but not strictly work-related - think book summaries, reflection sessions, quizzes, and unconventional learning games)
Smart Edutainment: Activities blend education and entertainment, ensuring engagement while delivering value.
Recognition and Motivation: Employees who demonstrate curiosity and initiative are recognized - through shoutouts, badges, or spotlights in sessions.
Asynchronous and Synchronous Mix: Some activities happen live (synchronous), while others leverage platforms like MS Teams, WhatsApp, or Asana for ongoing, flexible participation (asynchronous).
Real-World Examples from CTQ
1. Social Katta for Professional Networking
Challenge: A company wanted to attract top talent who weren’t actively job-hunting.
Solution: CTQ designed a program to help employees build their presence on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter, enabling organic connections with industry leaders.
How it worked:
Demystified social media for employees
Recognized and rewarded those who excelled
Ran quarterly sessions for new joiners and refreshers for others
Created a “social katta”—a virtual gathering for professional networking and learning.
2. Curiosity Café
Format: One-hour sessions, with 45 minutes dedicated to a book summary, quiz, or video, followed by 15 minutes spotlighting a participant.
Benefits:
Encourages sharing of new ideas and habits
Recognizes and celebrates curiosity-driven behaviors
Builds stronger, interest-based connections among colleagues
Can Every Company Implement a Curiosity Calendar?
Absolutely! The key is deliberate planning and customization.
Scalability: Works for teams of all sizes - large organizations can leverage asynchronous channels to ensure everyone participates, while smaller teams can have more intimate, synchronous sessions.
Inclusivity: Activities can be designed to include all levels of seniority, creating opportunities for leaders and new joiners to learn from each other and build authentic connections.
Flexibility: Consider employees’ schedules and preferences (e.g., avoid scheduling during popular siesta times!) to maximize participation and impact.
Tips for Uplevelers: Designing Your Own Curiosity Calendar
Start with Clear Objectives: Define what you want to achieve - innovation, collaboration, learning, or all of the above.
Mix It Up: Blend synchronous and asynchronous activities to suit different work styles and time zones.
Choose the Right Themes: Focus on topics that are adjacent to work but spark genuine curiosity.
Recognize and Celebrate: Regularly spotlight employees who embody curiosity and learning.
Leverage Technology: Use collaboration tools to facilitate ongoing engagement and knowledge sharing.
Iterate and Improve: Gather feedback and refine your calendar to keep it fresh and relevant.
The Upleveler’s Takeaway
A curiosity calendar isn’t just another engagement tool—it’s a strategic lever for building a future-ready, resilient, and innovative organization. By deliberately designing opportunities for curiosity, learning, and cross-team connection, you create a culture where employees and your company can thrive in a rapidly changing world.
“When the company is being thoughtful and doing something that is helping employees grow, it has been seen that they actually have a much stronger sense of belonging.”
Ready to uplevel your team’s curiosity quotient? Start planning your curiosity calendar today—or reach out to CTQ for expert guidance!
Stay curious, stay relevant, and keep upleveling!
We hope you liked this newsletter and if you wish to uplevel
Yourself: Watch our YouTube Playlist & join CTQ Compounds.
Your Team: See our Case Studies & connect with us