The power of questions

3d small people - complicated question

Are you good at asking questions?

If not, think about it. How can you become better at asking questions?

Questions are crucial to knowledge, ideas and insight.

Questions make you listen – and learn more. Questions make others think and then they learn more.

Questions can be used to probe, to involve, to innovate, to connect and to start discussions.

Just keep them open. There are times for closed questions too (those that give a yes or a no answer), but not when you want to delve deeper.

Think of asking questions that start with HOW, WHEN, WHAT, WHERE – all great, exploring question words. The only one to be careful with is WHY…. the word WHY can make people defensive and make them feel as if they have to explain themselves.

Now, we recommend using questions with your team too, as a way of initiating conversations and exploring opportunities.

There are a number of these involving, exploring questions at the back of The Team Formula. Here are a few of them:

What do you see as the strengths of your team?
How well do people support each other across departments and functions?
How do problems and issues get handled in your team?

Check them out and use the ones that resonate with you. And notice how they draw people in and create new insights.

Become an expert at asking questions – and be amazed at how much you learn.

Thanks for reading
Elisabet and Mandy

Author: Excellence in Leadership

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