HAVE THE WISDOM OF "COLUMBO" TO ASK THE DUMB QUESTION

"Successful executives are great askers" - Warren Bennis

Growing up, the most important thing for me as a young boy right through high school and college was sports. I loved sports. Sports was more important to me than school. I did OK in school, considering the minimum amount of effort dedicated to studying. My self-concept was that of an average student. It wasn’t until I was studying for my MBA that things changed. Suddenly, I found myself using my discretionary time (I studied for my MBA part-time evenings for three years while working full time) to pursue this personally important goal. In fact, it was important to most of my fellow classmates. I found myself competing with similar goal-oriented students with a purpose in mind—to get good grades and get that MBA. I also realized something else. By competing alongside other serious-minded students, knowing we had to have a B average to graduate, I found that I was actually a very good student. The reason? Very simply, I applied myself. I achieved my goal of getting the MBA and actually enjoyed the journey. The #1 thing this MBA did for me then, and continues to do for me today, is this: it gave me the confidence to ask the dumb question. I realized if I did that well in graduate school, working and competing alongside other talented students with similar goals, then I must be smarter than I thought. I have brought this simple confidence with me to every meeting. If I know I am at least as smart as the next person, and I am not understanding something in a meeting, I do one simple thing: I use this confidence to ask the dumb question. Do you remember Detective Columbo, the TV character played so perfectly by the actor Peter Falk? Columbo was brilliant by asking the dumb question. And each dumb question got Columbo closer to solving the crime. He had the wisdom and the confidence to ask the dumb questions, or I should say, the brilliant questions.

I have been told I ask insightful questions when really, they are the dumb questions. Sometimes, they are so dumb that people look at me and say… “Great question!” or “That was the perfect question!” or "I wanted to ask that question!" Too much credit really. It is usually just the dumb question that turns out to be the insightful question.

So, to share a personal and professional life lesson with you: have the wisdom and the confidence to ask the dumb question!

I used to teach finance to all levels of managers and professionals. I used to tell them about having the confidence to ask the dumb questions. I know that finance can be unnecessarily intimidating, which is why I talk about it in a previous post. As an example, I would ask the managers, “What does ROI mean?” Invariably, most people knew the answer. They would say, “It means return on investment.” “That’s correct,” I would say. Then I would ask, “What does return on investment mean?” You see, many people sit in meetings where someone talks about the ROI on this project, or that initiative. It has happened to me. As professionals or aspiring leaders, you may not want to ask the dumb question, “What do you mean by ROI?” I did this once. In a meeting a number of years ago, I asked the person leading the meeting (as he was the head of a large-scale project in the company) what he meant by ROI. He looked at me as if I had two heads and said, “It means the return on investment, Mike.” I said, “I know, but how are you measuring return on investment?” He could not answer. You see, this so-called dumb question makes one realize that ROI (return on investment) can mean a number of different things. It could mean return on equity, return on asset, payback, internal rate of return, return on invested capital, etc.

Don’t be afraid to ask the dumb question. People will appreciate it, respect it, and, quite frankly, it is important to gather the necessary understanding. It also helps the presenter by thinking through the content more thoroughly as well as better understanding what is on the minds of audience members.

Tips for asking good questions:

1. Tie a question back to the purpose, goal, or objective.
2. Ask a question that takes a concept down to a practical or pragmatic level (i.e., from the big picture down to some practical details).
3. Listen actively. You’ll be surprised how questions will come to you.
4. Insightful questions often begin with “What if.”
5. What is the “So what?”(implications) and/or the “Now what?”
6. Generate questions by staying ahead by doing your homework/preparation.

• Think of someone you know who has a knack for asking good questions. Why is he or she so good? What does the person do? What makes the questions such good questions?

From the Book, How To Think Like a CEO and Act Like a Leader