When Acting Like a Child at Work is a Good Thing

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.” – Albert Einstein

Sometimes, we find ourselves stuck in workplace ruts, overwhelmed by deadlines and expectations. That natural inquisitiveness we had as children — the one that made us ask “why?” to everything — somehow gets buried under adult responsibilities and fears.

Watch children for a moment. My niece’s four-year-old recently spent an hour investigating how shadows work, creating elaborate hand puppets without concern about “doing it wrong.” When was the last time you approached a problem with such freedom? Children ask questions without worrying about appearing uninformed. They experiment without fear of failure. They imagine possibilities that adults would dismiss as impractical.

Many of us exchange this creative freedom for caution and conformity somewhere along our professional journey.

The Cost of Lost Creativity

What happens when we abandon creativity in our professional lives? Initially, it might seem safer — fewer risks, fewer failures. But the long-term consequences are severe: Organizations stagnate. Teams become disengaged. Individuals feel unfulfilled. Eventually, people and companies risk becoming dinosaurs — outdated, unproductive, and ultimately dispensable in an innovation-driven economy.

Consider the companies that failed to innovate: Blockbuster, Kodak, and Nokia (Cano & Zettelmann, 2024). They didn’t lack talented people; they lacked environments where creative thinking could flourish and be heard.

Creating Space for Innovation

So how do we create workplaces where creativity thrives? It starts with leadership that values exploration over immediate efficiency.

When team members bring new ideas, our default response is often an automatic “no” — usually disguised as “we don’t have time” or “that’s not how we do things.” We might feel threatened by approaches different from our own or worry about appearing less knowledgeable if we entertain unconventional thinking.

But consider how much courage it takes for someone to voice a novel idea. Each “no” reinforces the message that creativity isn’t welcome. Each dismissal teaches your team to keep innovations to themselves.

True leadership isn’t about having all the answers — it’s about creating conditions where diamonds in the rough can be discovered, polished, and displayed. When your team shines brightly, you shine even brighter as the leader who made it possible.

Tools and Fundamentals

In our HFTP Academy webinar “Appy Hour”, we explore various applications and tools that support what we refer to as the five essential soft skills for the 21st century: communication, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and self-management (Streefland, 2022).

While these digital tools can enhance these skills, they are supplements to — not substitutes for — the fundamental skills themselves. Technology can help visualize ideas or facilitate connections, but it can’t replace understanding what effective communication entails or knowing how to think critically about complex challenges (University of South Australia, 2025).

Practical Steps to Revitalize Workplace Creativity

Implement “idea time.” Dedicate specific periods where the only goal is generating ideas without immediate judgment. Google’s famous “20% time” policy — allowing engineers to spend one day weekly on side projects — produced Gmail and Google News (Clark, 2021).

Create psychological safety. Research by Google’s Project Aristotle found that feeling safe to express ideas without being judged was the most critical factor in high-performing teams. People need to know they won’t be ridiculed for unconventional thinking (Matthews, 2024).

Practice “yes, and” thinking. Take an approach used by performance artists that acknowledges contributions and builds upon them rather than shutting them down. Instead of “That won’t work because…”, try “Yes, and…” (Richard, 2020).

Encourage cross-pollination. Expose team members to different departments, industries, or disciplines. Breakthrough innovations often happen at the intersection of diverse knowledge domains.

Celebrate productive failure. When attempts at innovation don’t succeed but produce valuable learning, recognize this as progress rather than disappointment.

Remember that creativity is a talent we all possess. Still, it must be nurtured and encouraged, or else it could be suppressed by our immediate environment. By intentionally cultivating workplaces that welcome curiosity and experimentation, we don’t just produce better ideas — we create more fulfilling professional experiences and more resilient organizations (Toner, 2024).

The curiosity we once possessed as children hasn’t disappeared. It’s simply waiting for permission to reemerge. So go ahead and act like a child at work today — be inquisitive and fearless — and see what great things you will create.

Sources:

• Cano, J. A. & Zettelmann, A. (2024). The High Cost of Complacency: Lessons from Kodak, Blockbuster, and Nokia. Health Management.

• Clark, D. (2021, December 16). Google’s ’20% rule’ shows exactly how much time you should spend learning new skills — and why it works. CNBC.

• Mathews, S. (2024, September 25). Project Aristotle: Implications and challenges. Leading Sapiens.

• Richard, E. (2020, April 30). “Yes, and…”: How artists are using improvisation and spontaneity in their work. Art21.

• Streefland, G. (2022, January 8). Four Digital skills you need to cultivate to thrive in the new world of work. Franklinfitch.com.

• Toner, K. (2024, August 16). Command and control kill creativity and fresh thinking. IMD.

• University of South Australia. (2025, February 3). Could AI kill human creativity? Phys.org.

Arlene Ramirez is the senior vice president, learning for HFTP. With over 25 years as a hospitality industry finance professional, she has broad expertise in multi-property business operations, resource optimization, contract negotiation, financial processes and controls and asset management. Her focuses are on streamlining operations, driving revenue growth, creating new efficiencies and building the bottom line.

In 2019, Ramirez founded Ascend, which focuses on delivering online learning and certification programs designed to address professional growth opportunities for individuals and organizations. She has also worked in the field of higher education, bringing her professional experience to the classroom at the Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership at the University of Houston teaching finance, hotel development, project management and project implementation courses.

Ramirez holds a Bachelor’s in Accounting from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Sam Houston State University while currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Instructional Systems Design and Technology. She is a Certified Hospitality Accounting Executive (CHAE), Certified Hospitality Educator (CHE) and holds certifications in Hotel Industry Analytics (CHIA) and Advanced Hospitality and Tourism Analytics (CAHTA).