Why are we asking questions?
Thinking of this piece, I asked myself this question and I smiled. It is part of Peoplerise’s DNA, both in our approach to consulting with clients, but also as a working method that we adopt internally. As we saw in the previous post, the question marks, in fact, give everyone the opportunity to open a space of exploration, where you can give your contribution and are a bit like a blank sheet of paper where you can sketch your own design. But they are also a powerful tool for self-observation, to see oneself from the outside as if there were an external perspective that allows us to grasp what is the potential for change in the organization and to understand what is the next step towards the future that we want to create. To get to these questions the methodology of reference for us is the Theory of Powerful Questions, developed within the Art of hosting. According to this methodology, the questions that help us reflect are those that begin with why, who, when, and where. While the questions that do not create movement, internal and external, are those to which we can only answer yes or no, since they only ask for confirmation or not of a solution or a proposal, which is already defined. In general, one of the most interesting aspects of the work we do with clients is our interest in passing on this ability to ask ourselves and others questions, precisely to acquire this ability to grasp the potential that exists in a specific situation, rather than in an organization. And to obtain this result certainly a key element that helps is curiosity; that is, the desire to try to understand the reality that others are experiencing, to have an authentic interest in all the phenomena that happen around us. Sometimes, however, what we can see in companies is that some people encounter their own inner resistance in trying to apply and practice the art of asking. This is because we come from a culture accustomed to giving answers rather than asking questions. So, if I ask a question as a boss or collaborator, I can feel the fear of appearing incompetent, or of admitting that I do not have the solution to a certain question. So, asking the question or questions becomes a real change of mindset.
In fact, we move from the habit of always responding to what employees ask for by providing solutions, to an approach in which the leader helps his team to ask the appropriate questions, so that people find the best solution for the process or project in which they are protagonists. And the complexity often lies in the fact that this transformation is initially experienced as a loss of competence and power. In fact, another quality-related to asking questions is humility. To admit, first of all to ourselves, that the solution, the best or the most innovative idea to respond to a problem of the organization does not lie in individual skills and abilities, but in the value that is generated by entering into a relationship with others and sharing their experiences, insights, ideas. Asking questions is therefore an act of leadership that requires you to put aside your ego, to look to the common good that can be generated for the organization, combining different professions, sensitivities, and points of view.
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