The Right Questions Are The Key To Strong Strategy & Culture

As humans, we are hard wired to ask non-supportive questions. Meaning we tend to focus on obstacles and perceived threats first. For example, how many times have we all asked, "How hard can this be?" This question takes the questioner and listener to focus on the negative aspect of "hard."  Subconsciously focusing on the ways it can be hard and create the experience of "hard."

Whereas, if you ask, "How easy can this be?" - notice the shift in focus and thinking.

Asking the right questions of yourself and your team is critical in decision making and strategizing. The bonus on bringing your team into decision making and strategizing is they get the opportunity to take ownership of the decisions and strategy - feeling more invested in the movement and execution of them.

Coaches and therapists are trained to ask the right questions in order to help the client tap into the inner wisdom and knowledge needed to move forward. Leaders that use this same line of questioning get a lot farther than leaders relying solely on themselves or just a couple of people to come up with all the right answers. Questions also cause engagement of both sides of the brain bringing creativity into play.

So, what is the best line of questioning for a leader to follow?

According to a recent article in Harvard Business Review, there are five types of questions leaders can use that are most effective in strategic decision-making.

Investigative questions bring clarity to what you wish to accomplish and what is needed to do so. This is where, "why?" is useful. For those that remember Dragnet, getting to the facts in the matter is the name of the game. Go deep here.

Speculative questions expand creativity with the what if...? How might we...? What is the possibility of...? This can help you and your team overcome limiting assumptions - which is a trap that is easy to fall into. Creative problem solving lives in these questions.

Productive questions reveal capabilities and resources available and what is needed in order to fully execute into the desired outcomes and results. These questions often have a number attached to the answer. How many...How long....How much? Metrics and milestones are the name of the game here.

Interpretive questions get to the crux of things. Questions like, "does this align with our mission and vision?" These questions look at the unfolding of the strategy and asks what emerges. These questions draw out implications and impact of strategic moves.

Subjective questions bring the human component into the equation where culture is considered and where a recent book called, Culture Shock, points to accelerating strategy. This is the emotional component where you have the opportunity to increase both employee and customer engagement. For instance, are your employees empowered to treat customers right? Unfortunately, the experience for most customers is "policy" over process. Asking your teams what they are noticing on the user end can be a powerful game changer.

As in most things in life and business, balance in your questions is needed and you will find that you need answers from some types of questions before considering other types of questions.

If you are ready to polish leadership, develop or accelerate a current strategy - my team and I would love to chat with you about that.