I love the TV show Ted Lasso, and its line: “Be curious, not judgmental.” The impetus behind it being curiosity really hit home.
I’ve studied behavioral psychology — unprofessionally — how to get people to do what you would like them to do because it’s in their best interest.
The Ted Lasso show made a connection for me that I hadn’t made before. Also in my behavioral psychology studies, I came across the line “be curious, not furious,” and tying in with the studies on the amygdala and how that impacts our decision-making capabilities, all of this came together to help me realize that curiosity really is at the heart of being secure.
I’m a parent with kids, teenagers, and I’ve been in a corporate environment for over two decades, and I know that fear-based training works in the short run.
It gets people to do what you want them to do. But it does not strengthen long-term connection, loyalty, etc.
It can damage the reputation or the standing of your security department, because people see it as a compliance mechanism, as something they have to do — and not something that actually protects them and makes them equal partners in securing the organization.
So with all that in mind: I want to push the idea that curiosity is the way to go.
That teaching employees to take a pause. To take a moment to recognize when their brains are being triggered by a message of urgency, a fake authority figure, a too-good-to-be-true message offering something of monetary value.
When those emotions get triggered — when they’re reading emails, or interacting with something that is sensitive — that they take a step back. They take a pause. They learn to take a breath.
And that’s what this is all about.
That training, that awareness, to be able to help employees recognize that when they are in control, they are safe.
And this extends into their personal lives. So in their personal connections with others: if they can learn to take a breath before they lash out or say something they would regret — that moment of mindfulness, that curiosity about what they’re feeling — is going to improve their personal lives. It’s going to improve how they show up at work, and with their co-workers. And in the long run it’s going to contribute to a stronger security posture, with that type of mentality.