Openness to Experience: Can This ‘Big 5’ Personality Trait Be Developed?

When was the last time you thought about a person’s choices or behaviours and thought, “That’s just the way they are – they’ve always been like that, they’re not going to change now”? As a society, we tend to talk about personality as if its fixed and unlikely to ever change.

Like the other Big Five personality traits, Openness is believed to be relatively stable throughout a person’s life. However, all traits can be developed and changed over time with coaching, practice, and conscious choices.

And for organisations that are seeking progress and growth through an inclusive culture, finding a way to cultivate higher levels of Openness and curiosity should be a top priority.

The Link Between Openness and Progress

Individuals that have a higher level of openmindedness are also the ones who are more likely to listen and experience other people’s viewpoints. They’re more courageous in stepping outside of their comfort zones with less hesitation.

On the other end of the spectrum, those with lower levels of Openness tend to feel safer in familiar territory. They have no qualms about missing out on experiences or not latching onto new or unconventional ideas in favour of what they already know and love. They also don’t want to find themselves in situations in which their own views are challenged.

Now, just to be clear – there is no right and wrong or good and bad personality (psychopaths aside!). Being less open to new experiences isn’t necessarily a “bad” trait to have, but from the perspective of an organisation that’s primed for growth, being unable or unwilling to try new methods and think outside the box can hinder innovation and can be their biggest downfall (think Kodak!). And for an organisation that is looking for diverse thinking, bringing in new talent and cultivating an environment where difference is valued, having leaders with less Openness is also an important issue to address.

The Pitfalls of Thinking Fast

Our brains have a natural dislike for ambiguity. Cognitive dissonance (when what we expect to happen doesn’t happen) makes us uncomfortable to the extent that our brains try desperately to make sense of what we’re seeing so it tallies with what we know. We also see this aversion in action in particular when we’re in the fast-lane chasing a deadline, rushing around trying to accomplish everything on our to-do list. Our brain shifts to auto-pilot (what Daniel Kahneman calls System 1 thinking in his book ‘Thinking Fast and Slow’) to the point where we become unwilling to consider new ideas. We’re too focused on the end result and don’t want to 'muddy the waters' by listening to other perspectives.

What tends to happen is that, as an organisation evolves, the very foundation of its power system is based on the majority group (often White men). And because they aren’t slowing down to really think about whether their decisions are right for everyone, organisations (and society) end up being designed in a way that makes sense for the majority.

In a way, you can see why making decisions that are likely to do the most good to the most people makes sense. But this mindset leaves out members of the company population whose needs aren’t taken into consideration, whose voices aren’t heard, who aren’t able to fulfil their potential and therefore aren’t thought of as highly, aren’t given as many opportunities and aren’t promoted…..and there we have unconscious bias and discrimination in action.

Breeding a Culture of Curiosity

When it comes to developing an inclusive culture, having leaders model openness and curiosity is key. It creates connections between people as they are truly listened to and heard. Doing so is vital to supporting collaboration and teamwork, the mental health and wellbeing of every employee and from this breeds achievement, growth, and success.

To leaders who want to create a more inclusive and curious environment, I recommend starting with yourselves. Try some of the following actions:

●    Go somewhere you’ve never been before.

●    Read a magazine article that doesn’t initially interest you.

●    Sleep in a different room of your home and notice what it feels like.

●    When waiting in queue or stuck in traffic, don’t pick up your phone. Instead, soak in the world around you.

Then, share your knowledge and experience with someone and notice what you both learn in the process.

It isn’t easy to notice when we have closed off to others’ perspectives or unconsciously overlooked someone’s view. And it certainly isn’t easy to put in place a new practice to develop curiosity. Our Avenir coaches are qualified and trained to support leaders in their development of inclusive behaviours. Get in touch if you’d like to find out more.