Sue Covelli-Buntley and Poyee Chiu of UpSpiral Leadership interview Eric Bailey, best-selling author of The Cure for Stupidity. His consulting firm, Bailey Strategic Innovation Group, has an extensive portfolio of clients which include Google, the US Airforce, and many others. Equipped with a master’s degree in leadership and organizational development, Eric is passionate about using radical curiosity to incite change and understanding.
[00:41] Introducing Eric Bailey
[05:15] Eric’s Passion for Creating Change
[08:18] The Concept of Radical Curiosity
[15:13] The Empathy Gap
[21:54] Creating Boundaries that Unite Instead of Divide
[25:12] “Just Shut Up and Listen”
[36:40] The Lightning Round: A Series of Brief Questions
[47:20] The Flip: “It’s Not Me, It’s Them”
Eric recognizes that all of his life experiences have brought him to where he is today. At the age of 5, he was living on the streets with his family. His mother put herself through dentist school, which eventually improved their living conditions. As an adult, Eric had a colorful career having worked at a restaurant, zoo, and a healthcare company. He obtained his master’s degree from Saint Louis University. During graduate school, he met Dr. John P. Kotter and had the opportunity to work with him for a year. Afterwards, he started his own consulting company that specializes in organization culture and business strategy.
From his experience working in training and development, he noticed that HR departments are fixated on correcting behavior. Similarly, we have the same goal when communicating with others. We enter conversations because we want to prove that we are right. Opinions different from our own are immediately dismissed. No real dialogue can happen because people refuse to take a new vantage point.
Eric explains that this divide is rooted in human nature. We have created tribes as a way for us to know who to trust. In the process of forming groups, we determine who is a friend or foe. If they are not one of our own, then we do not hear them out. Creating an enemy out of the other group feels good because it highlights membership in our tribe. It is this “us vs. them” mentality that creates the empathy gap. When people perceive that they are on different teams, they lose their empathy for the opposing team. Rivals are no longer cared for as human beings.
Judging others has become a learned reflex but there is a way to close the empathy gap. First, you need to be aware that these tribal boundaries are based on perception. Instead of emphasizing differences, choose to look at similarities. Create categories that would put you and your “rivals” on the same team.
Next, replace judgment with radical curiosity. Have that genuine yearning to understand the other person’s context. Let go of your desire to be understood and to be correct. Assume that you are talking to a rational being and find out their why. By identifying the “why”, you’ll see that people aren’t so different after all. From that realization of a shared goal, we can collaborate on a solution to achieve our “why”. Radical curiosity makes space for innovation and possibilities.
Check out Eric’s book: The Cure for Stupidity on Amazon. Get in touch with Eric via LinkedIn or via Bailey Strategic Innovation Group’s website. For more information on becoming an excellent leader, visit the UpSpiral Leadership website, and remember to tune in on the next episode!