Do This in the New Year and You Will be Successful

This is the typical claim, isn't it?      Do this diet, participate in this fad or do as the process prescribes and success will automatically be yours.

Well, maybe yes and maybe no - but I do know that this one thing that really works:   ask a lot of questions.

Why should we ask a lot of questions?   Because we don't know all of the answers.

But what if we think we know the answer;  why ask a question then?   Because there is a good chance that we really don't know the answer.  Because maybe one or two more questions will solidify whether or not we really know the facts.

Doesn't asking questions make us look less knowledgeable vs. just being able to give the right answer?  Nope.  Actually the opposite is usually the case.

What if I get an answer I don't like?    Then we get an answer we don't like - but it gives us a firmer foundation upon which to move forward.

What if I embarrass myself by asking a question?    In reality, this seldom happens. In fact, we most often subjugate ourselves with spouting a wrong answer.   Even if we are embarrassed, we can learn something by the answer/the reaction/the feedback.

What does asking a question do vs. just straight up giving an answer?   It invites participation.  It opens a conversation.  It begins an interchange.

Instead of just asking a "bunch of questions" isn't there another way to think about this?   Yes, we are engaging in inquiry.  We are trying to find out more.   We are sharing opinions,   We are fact finding.

Is there a formula for asking the right question?  Really, no.  Even the simplest of answers can lead us to places of commonality or additional inquiry that we have failed to consider thus far.  But, be genuine.  Be genuinely interested.

Be invested in finding things out.

What questions do you need to ask?

My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.