The Cost of A Wrong Question

While walking through an IKEA aisle, I spotted a charming lion and instantly felt a connection. Maybe it was something I would have loved as a child. Curious, I turned to my daughter and asked, “Do you like it? It’s so cute; I really liked it. Do you want it too?” She, just 5 or 7 years old, nodded enthusiastically. Later, I proudly told my husband, “See, we both like it, so let’s buy it.” This might seem like an innocent impulse buy, but I later realized that I had asked leading questions—subconsciously guiding her to agree with me. The result? The lion ended up forgotten in her toy bag, hardly ever played with.

A leading question is one that subtly or overtly pushes someone toward a specific answer, often without them even realizing it.

So, how much could the cost of such a mistake be for a company? In some cases, billions—just look at Walmart in 2009.

At that time, Walmart was facing fierce competition from Target, which was perceived as cleaner, better designed, and less cluttered. In an attempt to out-innovate their rival, Walmart launched a billion-dollar project to redesign their stores. They asked customers, “Would you like Walmart aisles to be less cluttered?” The answer was almost universally “Yes”—after all, who wouldn’t prefer less clutter? So, Walmart took this feedback as a directive and spent hundreds of millions of dollars removing 15% of their inventory, shortening shelves, and clearing aisles. But the result? Sales plummeted by an astounding $1.85 billion. Customers had said they wanted less clutter, but the change actually disrupted the shopping experience. The leading question had misled their decision-making.

"Would you like Walmart aisles to be less cluttered?" The only sensible answer seems to be "Yes."

This issue isn’t confined to corporate giants; I've experienced it firsthand in many places. Once, while waiting to see a doctor at a well-known hospital, a staff member approached with an iPad, asking if I was willing to provide feedback. I agreed, and she began asking questions on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best. When I rated one question with a score of 3, the staff member quickly responded, “Okay, I’ll make it 7. Is that okay? It won’t look good if it's too low.” She repeated this for several questions until I finally told her to just complete the survey herself. The attempt to manipulate the feedback was clear, and I was frustrated. You can guess what would have happned after the feedback.

On another occasion, while assessing business excellence for an international award, I came across a laughable survey. Employees were asked to rate their satisfaction with the company while drinking juice. The questions were ridiculously simple and funny:

Did you like the juice?

Would you drink it every day?

Do you like the company?

Do you love your job?”

Do you want to remain employed?

The results were presented as overwhelmingly positive, but the survey was nothing more than an exercise in confirming a predetermined outcome. Somehow I managed to control me from laughing.

Even in smaller settings, leading questions can skew results. For example, in a store with a faulty rating system where only two of the five buttons worked, customers were unable to provide honest feedback, which distorted the results. I’ve also had experiences where, after giving honest feedback to a manager, the response was simply, “Can you write this down in an email?” It became clear the manager wasn’t interested in actually acting on the feedback—they were just following protocol.

Gauge a person's maturity by the questions they ask, not the answers they give.

Leading questions are everywhere—from customer surveys to employee feedback—and they can cost businesses much more than just money. They can lead to missed opportunities and misguided strategies.

For example, asking customers, “How much did you enjoy our most amazing service?” isn’t just poorly phrased; it’s a blatant attempt to influence a positive response, whether or not it’s the truth.

In fact, leading questions are so problematic that in legal settings, they are often disallowed during court proceedings, as they can lead to biased answers and distorted facts.

A lot happens at the neural level when you ask someone a question.

As someone with a background in science, math, Six Sigma, business excellence, and IT, I encourage both individual and corporate clients to spend more time crafting the right questions. By doing so, you can reduce the complexity of your strategies and narrow down the right solutions.

I bring frameworks that integrate neuroscience and behavioral science-based approaches to design smarter questions. A well-designed question can be far more powerful than countless meetings or discussions.

A well-designed question can be far more powerful than countless meetings or discussions.

As business leaders and managers, it's essential to ask the right questions. Smart questioning is critical for gathering valuable insights and making informed decisions. Crafting the right questions requires effort—it’s not just about asking anything that comes to mind. In fact, the question is just the tip of the iceberg. The real work is in designing thoughtful, unbiased, smart questions that open doors to new possibilities.

The question is the key to unlocking innovation, understanding, and growth. Whether you're seeking feedback from employees, customers, or vendors, your questions shape the answers—and, ultimately, your success. Whether you're on stage, in a boardroom, at an event, speaking to a child, dealing with an angry customer, or reflecting on personal development, asking smart questions is critical. The cost of failing to do so is much higher than you may think.

Asking the right, smart, and thought-provoking questions is one of the essential skills for leadership, customer excellence, and business success.

So, when you're ready to ask smarter questions using neuroscience, behavioral science, and results-driven frameworks, you know how to reach me, don't you?

Neetu Choudhary

Warm regards, Neetu Choudhary

[email protected]

?? With 22 years of delivering business-driven results, I've worked with thousands of professionals across 30+ countries. I am an award-winning keynote speaker, internationally acclaimed corporate trainer, UAE's top professional development coach, author, idea presentation advisor, and business excellence expert.

You might also be interested in another insightful newsletter by Neetu Choudhary, which explores the different shades of life, society, and self through thought-provoking topics: Sunday Shades Newsletter ??