The best businesses run on questions.
But despite their power, questions are not encouraged in many businesses.
Five reasons why people don’t ask questions.
- Questions can be seen as “inefficient” by many business leaders, who are so anxious to act, to do, that they often feel they don’t have time to question just what it is they’re doing.
- Questions can be hazardous to one’s career: to raise a hand in the conference room and ask “Why?” is to risk being seen as uninformed.
- Questions challenge authority and disrupt established structures, processes, and systems, forcing people to have to at least think about doing something differently.
- Questions require leaders to give up control. That they might not have all the answers. Or that others might come to an answer that they fear.
- Questions can make people impatient and even uncomfortable. The answers might lead to places people don’t want to go.
When your employees overcome these barriers, your performance will improve.
To normalise questions, start asking them.
This requires bravery, courage and a little bit of skill.
Learn how to ask good questions in “A Beautiful Question” by Warren Berger
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