Curiosity at Work: How CuriosityBased Is Redefining Leadership, Respect, and Culture
CuriosityBased founder, Dr. Julie Pham, shares how curiosity can transform workplaces, elevate leadership, and create a culture of respect, learning, and deeper human connection.
The Spark Behind CuriosityBased
CuriosityBased was born from a community service initiative. Julie Pham, its founder, created a program that united volunteers from diverse sectors to tackle pressing community issues. As the program evolved, a striking observation emerged: while some volunteers flourished, others struggled—and the key difference was curiosity.
Julie realized that curiosity is the foundation of so many other good things—empathy, innovation, collaboration, and connection.
This insight led to a powerful realization: curiosity could do more than help volunteers, it could transform workplaces. And since people spend most of their waking hours at work, the potential impact was enormous. CuriosityBased took root in a company dedicated to helping organizations become spaces for continual learning and trust.
The Future of Work: Curiosity as a Leadership Superpower
As rapid technological change reshapes the workplace, curiosity has become an essential tool for navigating ambiguity.
Julie believes the role of leaders must evolve—from hiring purely for current skills to hiring for learning potential. But it doesn’t stop there. Leaders must also foster environments where curiosity and growth are supported. In this vision of the future, curiosity is not a “soft skill”—it’s a strategic imperative.
Learning Through Challenge: The 2008 Lesson
One of her most defining leadership experiences came during the Great Recession, when she took the reins of her family’s newspaper. It was a time marked by both economic collapse and the decline of print media.
That tough chapter taught her that constraints can be a gift. Rather than seeing limitations as setbacks, she began to view them as creative prompts and opportunities to focus on what truly matters and explore new ways forward.
What’s Next: Spreading the Language of Respect
Now, 4.5 years into CuriosityBased, the experimentation phase has narrowed into intentional focus. The company is doubling down on expanding its 7 Forms of Respect framework—a model that helps people ask not just “Was that respectful?” but “How do you want to be respected?”
The team is also working on a personal version of this framework, so that families can adopt it too, bringing emotional intelligence and mutual understanding into the home.
Redefining Higher Purpose
For the founder, “higher purpose” has become a multi-layered commitment:
For her team: It’s about building a company where people grow, succeed, and co-create a meaningful mission.
For her industry: It’s about ensuring that women of color are paid and recognized for their ideas and leadership—by amplifying others, she contributes to systemic change.
For the world: It’s about helping people engage with curiosity and transforming the way we talk about respect. Moving from binary labels to nuanced conversations unlocks deeper human connection.
Curiosity isn’t just a mindset. It’s a movement.
And through CuriosityBased, its founder, Julie Pham, is leading the way—one question, one workplace, and one respectful conversation at a time.
ABOUT US: IMPACTIKA CONSULTING
We at Impactika Consulting help do-gooders do better through purpose-propelled® consulting. We are an OMWBE and DBE certified digital marketing, strategy, and social change consulting firm. We help for-purpose organizations take on the world’s toughest challenges in digital rights, social and economic justice, education, and more.
As an advocate for both business and doing good, Impactika is a women-led team committed to helping organizations around the world find impactful and meaningful ways to market their purposes and connect with others.
We don’t make memes. We will never buy followers. We will not create spam. We believe in creating and spreading the word about purpose-propelled people and businesses.
Let us stay in touch on LinkedIn!
Thank you Yavnika for all that you do to support social impact entrepreneurs!