How Asking Questions Can Help You Achieve Your Goals
Asking questions can be a powerful tool for achieving your goals. Whether you are a design engineer or a leader, effective questioning can help you gain information, investigate, provide a sense of safety and security, trigger thinking, invoke philosophy, guide, calm and develop understanding. Most often we think of asking questions in order to get answers. But what if you asked the right questions in order to get the best possible outcome??
Agreeing Through Questions?
Asking questions can also be used to agree with someone else’s point of view. By asking the right questions, you can acquire closure or peace about an issue that may have been previously unresolved; for example “I agree with your advice that we need to delegate more tasks to the vendor to manage the workload. With the deadline approaching in 1 week, I’m unsure if we have the right systems and understandings in place to leverage the vendor appropriately. What do you think is necessary to succeed with the vendor and the runway we have?” Asking these types of questions shows that you are actively listening and are interested in their opinion.?
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Defending Through Questions?
Questions can also be used to defend yourself against any objections or criticism; for example “It is clear we didn’t deliver the product on time and missed including 2 out of the 5 features the customer wanted. How can our team use our strengths and handle the situation differently?” Asking this type of question allows you to showcase your team’s effectiveness and successes without putting yourself in a defensive position.
Influencing Through Questions???
Questions can also be used to influence another person’s opinion on a certain subject. One might be tempted to ask “Why do we need more resources when we already have enough staff?” A better way to ask is, “How do you think we could meet our objectives with the current staff?” This type of question forces them to think critically about why they believe they need additional resources and provides opportunity for discussion on the matter.?
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Convincing Through Questions?
Lastly, asking questions is an effective way to convince someone of something that may not have been previously considered; for example “What could we do differently if we wanted our project to have greater results?” By presenting this type of scenario it encourages people to look at things from different perspectives which may lead them towards finding solutions that were not previously considered. This can happen when someone is complacent either knowingly or unknowingly. An example is when someone asks the question, “I see you are following your doctor’s advice and have made progress with your health. Do you really want to eat that sugary dessert and undo your hard work?”. Another work related example would be, “I noticed how much you care about this project and for the stakeholders involved. Do you not want to find an amicable resolution with the other team so you can find success for all involved?”.??
Preparing Through Questions?
Questions can also be used to prepare yourself for an upcoming activity or event. For example a brilliant self directed question is “What do I need to consider before I present my idea?” Thinking ahead through questioning is a great way to make sure you are as prepared as possible before taking action on any task. Time box and write down as many questions, objections, speculations, agreements and suggestions you anticipate our audience and stakeholder to ask. Write down objective answers to these questions in the form of metrics, examples, proposals, agreements, or even counter questions that lead to potential paths to a favorable outcome. Consider the situation where you documented 11 questions and corresponding responses. During the meeting you intercept the 12th question that holds little resemblance to the 11 you prepared. Your preparation has led you to start from experience and not from scratch while you articulate a response in real time. Imagine yourself starting a 100-meter race from the 10-meter mark if not from the 70 or 80-meter mark. You have increased your chance to win and bring victory to others who work with you.
Conclusion
Questions are incredibly powerful tools that allow us to gain insight into others' opinions and ideas while also allowing us to build relationships with those around us. Whether it's getting information, investigating, providing safety and security, triggering thinking, invoking philosophy or leading people towards solutions – asking questions is one of the most effective ways of achieving your goals and objectives in any situation! So next time you find yourself stuck in a situation where no answers seem obvious, would you be opposed to start asking some simple questions?
Authored by Andrew Betts and Suraj Ethirajan | GROUNOW