A Shift from "Why" in Problem Solving

As HR Specialists and Managers we sometimes feel the need to jump to asking the "why" questions, whether that be in appraisals or when handling day to day performance discussions.

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This is often because we want to get straight to desired outcome and we are rushing to achieve this. Perhaps this is due to time pressures or uncertainty about how to handle difficult conversations.

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But although this might seem like the quicker route. Rather than actually solving the problem, this is more likely to trigger a defensive reaction and to cause the employee to become closed off. We are essentially saying this is a "you problem" not a "we problem".

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Maybe rather than asking "why", the better question to ask is "how".

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"How can you work to solve this"; "How can we help you to achieve this"; "How can we overcome the obstacles you might face along the way".

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By doing this, we show that we are treating this as a "we problem" and we open the door to exploring things more effectively. We become solution focused, and we increase our chances of success.

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So the next time you sit down to have a difficult conversation with someone on your team, try starting with the how and see if it helps...