Asking questions as learners

I have written before about leaders as being askers of questions before, here, but there is always a bit more to explore. Good leaders are askers of questions, not offerers of solutions (Spitzer & Evans, 1997). Why? Because, as Michael Marquardt notes, "solving others’ problems is exhausting. It is much more effective to provide [staff with] the opportunity for them to solve their own problems" (2005, p. 12).

So why ask questions? That is so that leaders are not the person with all the answers. Asking others models a free exchange of ideas. It also shows that we value for other’s contributions. Asking allows everyone to participate, and to share. We hone our critical thinking muscles, and become more thoughtful and reflective. And collectively, these results help us to avoid group think (Daft, 2008). Asking questions of staff assists organisations to obtain "full participation and teamwork, to spur innovation and outside-the-box thinking, to empower others, to build relationships with customers, to solve problems, to develop leadership skills, and to change organizations and communities" (Marquardt & Tiede, 2023, p. 1).

However, this means we need to get good at asking questions. So how do we do that? One aspect we can master is asking questions as a learner, not as a judger. A judger question is a reactive, blame-allocating and closed. A learner question is proactive, coaching, and open: "focused on learning, we seek to understand the past as a way of guiding our actions in the future" (Marquardt & Tiede, 2023, p. 88). See the table shown with this post for a set of characteristics to help us in framing blameless questions in our work. Having a learning mindset helps to shape us as more optimistic people, assisting us to "presuppose new possibilities, a hopeful future, and sufficient resources" (p. 88).

But. We need to remember that our questions should lead us into a conversation, and a sharing of ideas, while avoiding shows of power. Because as soon as power comes into play, or a leader shuts anyone down, that conversation will dry up.

Sam

References:

Daft, R. L. (2008). The Leadership Experience (4th ed.). Thomson South-Western.

Marquardt, M. J. (2005). Leading with Questions: How Leaders find the right solutions by knowing what to ask. Jossey-Bass.

Marquardt, M. J., & Tiede, B. (2023). Leading with Questions: How leaders discover powerful answers by knowing how and what to ask (3rd ed.). John Wiley & Sons.

Spitzer, Q., & Evans, R. (1997). The new business leader: Socrates with a baton. Strategy & Leadership, 25(5), 32-39. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb054599