Asking the Right Questions

I am a proponent of a leadership style that involves a great deal of teaching or coaching versus a style that requires telling or directing work.  I have even written about this belief of Teach Don't Tell before.  One of the most effective ways to coach or lead is through the use of questions.

People generally try to provide a response to the questions that you ask.  The validity and reliability of the responses may be subject to question though.  How do you as a leader move people and the organization forward?  It will not be done on

There are many different questioning strategies that leaders can employ.   The easiest strategy is to change the first word in your question.  Most people by nature ask "What" questions.  These questions elicit responses that do not require much critical thinking.  The best shift in questioning will occur when you stop asking "What" and begin asking "Why".  The answers to "Why" questions are often more complex and get to the root of the issue.

Try asking three consecutive "Why" questions to seek a better understanding of a decision or a situation. By the end of the third "Why" you typically reach the core belief or root cause.

"Why" not try it and see if you get different results.

Rules to Break: That's How We Have Always Done It

"You are remembered for the rules you break." -Douglas MacArthur  

The MacArthur quote is especially true when you consider leadership.  If you don't break any rules you will continue to do the same things every day.  I thought I'd start a new series about the rules that leaders should be breaking.


The first rule in the series is more of a habit many leaders fall into.  It involves using the phrase "That's how we have always done it."  This is the cornerstone for answers about initiatives, procedures, etc. that do not make any sense.  If you are not convinced, try the following exercise.

• Pick something in your organization that doesn't make any sense, drives your crazy or gets in the way of the real work.
• Ask someone who has been in the organization for an extended period of time the following question: Why do we do that anyway?
• What answer are you likely to get?  The answer will be some variation of, "I'm not sure. That's the way we have always done it."

This is unfortunately also the answer to the most important question (WHY?) we can ask as leaders. These "that is how we have always done it" moments are also the things that are preventing change or improvement in organizations.  As a leader take inventory of all of your "that's how we have always done it" moments.  

• Can you answer the WHY question about your decisions, initiatives, and changes? 
• Does the answer to the WHY question actually match up with your stated values and beliefs?

Effective leaders move from "That's How We Have Always Done It" to "This is WHY we are doing it." The WHY must have a strong foundation in order to build an outstanding organization.


There are many other rules that leaders should break.  I'll try to capture more in the coming weeks. In the meantime...


What rules do you think leaders should break?

This is What Happens When People Don't Understand the WHY Behind Technology Integration

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