Asking Good Questions

A child questions everything, yet as adults, we often accept what is front of us, even if it doesn’t work so well, never asking for more information, clarification or simply, why? Our acceptance of what is rather than what could be can mean the loss of potential for an organization. By encouraging and asking questions,--good questions -- the kind of questions to challenge processes and simply ask why are we doing what we do in the workplace, organizations can move past the status quo and get more creative.

Why? So, why don’t we ask questions? Those of us who have been in the school system too long (high school, college, grad school) often regret asking too many questions; we get singled out, and not in a good way, for asking rather than accepting what we are told.

Maybe we have a question yet don’t ask when given the opportunity because we believe our question isn’t good enough to ask. In the workplace environment, we hesitate to question someone with authority or power over us, whether it’s our boss, a subject-matter expert, or even a colleague.

Many of us are intimidated by silence, the time when someone says “does anyone have any questions”; we may not want to reveal our ignorance. Instead of putting ourselves into a potentially embarrassing situation, we keep silent. Our question goes unasked and unanswered.

Good questioning skills are a talent we should help our employees to embrace.

Communicate and encourage. First and foremost, let employees know there are no stupid questions. Smart, successful people don’t accept what is front of them at face value and they certainly aren’t satisfied until they find an explanation they understand—to do this they ask questions.

Engage. Help people ask better questions. Give them effective examples such as:

·         "Can you explain the details of this situation?"

·         “Why did you choose this particular approach?”

·         “What are the possible consequences of going this route?"

·         “Why do you think this project turned out as it did?”

·         "Can this be accomplished in any other way?"

·         “Why did this work?”

·         "Why didn’t this work?"

·         "Based on your experience, what do you suggest we do here?"

Self-help guru Tony Robbins puts it like this, “Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers. “ By encouraging and showing employees how to ask good questions, you can develop their abilities—abilities for solving problems, being resourceful, and becoming more creative in the workplace.

Karen Sieczka is an Instructional Designer with a performance consulting company, Creativity@Work expert, and founder of Growing Great Ideas.com, a training resources website. Karen has designed, facilitated, and managed a variety of training programs including technology, soft skills, customer service, leadership, and business communications. She also trains organizations of all sizes to be more creative and innovative in the workplace using micro-steps from her Kindle eBook Growing Great Ideas: Unleashing More Creativity@Work.

Rapport is a many splendored thing

At a meeting yesterday, I was again struck by just how crucial it is to build a rapport with your training participants. Without that personal connection, a training session will often fall flat, no matter how high the level of expertise is on the part of the trainer, no matter how compelling the material.

Although most of my trainings are short, from a couple of hours to a day or two, one of my main objectives is to quickly build a personal connection with the people I train. How do I accomplish this so fast? One thing I do is to introduce myself on a first name basis as folks trickle in to the session. I also make myself a seating chart so I can connect a name and face easily (thank you, Dale Carnegie training). Third, I smile frequently and share some of my own foibles when working with the same subject matter we are currently learning.

I am asked at least once during a training how I am so good at remembering names and my answer is “its magic”. Then, since I am a trainer and teacher, I share my secrets.