Leadership Thought #221 – Ask Better Questions
Typically, it is our questions, not just our answers, that define us.
A weakness I often see in leaders is a tendency to rush to solutions. They tend to dominate most discussions with answers rather than stimulating discussion through questions. The problem is that, no matter how smart and capable you are, you will always be limited by your own thinking and life experiences. In addition, if you create an environment where everyone looks to you for answers, then you will hinder the growth and development of your employees and enable mediocre effort.
I consistently observe two key traits in exceptional leaders. One is the ability to listen attentively to what someone else is saying. The second is a remarkable ability to ask follow-up questions. The best leaders intuitively know that success most often lies in identifying and asking the right questions rather than jumping to quick conclusions based on personal hunches or faulty assumptions. You never lead a high-performing company by using “seat of the pants” or “gut-level” decision-making. A business is only as strong as its collective ability to make sense of and act on reality.
Asking good questions doesn’t come easily to everyone. Sadly, our educational system often prioritizes memorization and the force-feeding of information over Socratic dialogue. We build and reward confidence in “knowing” rather than “learning.” However, young children understand the importance of the word “why” from an early age. Every parent will tell you that this can get a bit tiresome at times, but it is just young minds trying to make sense of the world and understand how it works. They are not burdened with the belief that they should already know everything.
Regardless of your role in the organization, I encourage you to make a concerted effort to ask more effective questions. Don’t take intellectual shortcuts or cover up a lack of knowledge with simple head nodding and acquiescence. Don’t let your pride or ego get in the way of fully understanding what you need to know to be successful in your role. Never allow yourself to reach the point where you think you know it all, because you don’t and never will. Make it a habit to learn from others by asking them what they think and listening to their responses. Leaders will inevitably have to take responsibility for making the big decisions, but they should only do so after consulting with and learning from others who will be affected by them.
Related articles
- Ron Ashkenas: The Art of Asking Questions (huffingtonpost.com)
- The Art of Asking Questions (blogs.hbr.org)
- Try a Little Socrates (networkworld.com)
- The Absolutely Essential Qualities of Leadership … (customerthink.com)
- Thinking Scientifically (sciencebasedlife.wordpress.com)
- Thinking, Logic… (mymostfavoritethings.wordpress.com)
- Socrates (divinelightblog.wordpress.com)
- New To Leadership? If You Only Do One Thing, Do This (forbes.com)
