The Art of Asking Smarter Questions
Five takeaways:
Advances in technology and increases in the severity of global problems have elevated the importance of inquiry as a hard skill. Asking the smartest possible question can offer pathways to innovative, unforeseen solutions. So how do we sharpen our inquiry skills?
It is a leader’s job is to flush out information, insights, and alternatives, unearthing critical questions the team has overlooked. The greatest problems can arise from leaving the most important questions unasked.
Thus, these researchers analyzed their survey of business executives and found that strategic questions can be grouped into five leading classifications. Each unlocks a different aspect of the decision-making process. Together they can help you tackle key issues that are all too easy to miss. These 5 types of inquiry are:
- Investigative: Good leaders begin by clarifying their purpose and identifying what they need to learn; often using successive “Why?” questions to uncover deeper insights. Additionally, driving at “How?” can help groups move beyond generic solutions.
- Speculative: Speculative questions, such as “What if…?” and “What else…?”, enable leaders to reframe problems and explore creative solutions. The global design company IDEO uses the prompt “How might we…?” to overcome limiting assumptions and foster innovative problem-solving.
- Productive: Productive questions, such as, “How can we get this done done?” aid in evaluating the available capability, talent, time, and other resources. These questions drive the discussions in which action is explored and execution plans are honed.
- Interpretive: Interpretive, or “sensemaking” questions, enable action by continually redefining the core issue or probing deeper into the problem at hand. They follow up on investigative, speculative, and productive questions to draw out new conclusions, such as considering the impact of trends, exploring opportunities, and understanding the implications for scaling up.
- Subjective: The final category of questions addresses allows us to take reservations, frustrations, tensions, and hidden agendas that can derail decision-making into account. You have to emphasize the emotional aspects of a decision. Neglecting to do so can cause well-crafted solutions to be undermined by subjective reactions, despite solid analysis and plans.
By pinpointing strengths and weaknesses in your question-asking and considering the five types of questions outlined above, you will be more empowered to ask better questions- and create an atmosphere of smarter strategic inquiry.
From Arnaud Chevallier, Frédéric Dalsace, and Jean-Louis Barsoux for The Harvard Business Review
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