The importance of asking questions

Michael Bungay Stanier believes wholeheartedly in the importance of questions; it’s a theme that crops up in many of his books (and our summaries of them!) In anticipation of our webinar with Michael on Friday, March 11, we’ve curated our favourite takeaways involving questions from three of his top books. Read on to discover how questions can help you say yes to the right things (allowing more time for the work that really matters), how questions can move your great idea beyond the initial idea stage, and how asking questions can help you to become a better leader.

1. Say ‘Yes’ more slowly
   This idea comes courtesy of Do More Great Work, Michael’s top selling book to date. Many of us say ‘Yes’ too readily. “The answer is not to focus on saying no but rather on saying yes more slowly,” Michael explains. By being more selective with our yeses, we’ll have more time for the work that’s really important. So, how can we do this? The next time you’re asked to do something, consider asking the following questions:
   Why Me?
   – May I ask why you’re asking me?
   – Have you considered asking X? He’s got some experience with this. What’s the Brief?
   – When you say “Urgent”, what does that mean? When’s the latest it has to be done by?
   – If I could only do part of this, what part would you like me to do? What’s the big picture?
   – Have you checked this out with my boss?
   – What should I not do so I can do this?
2. Get your ideas moving
   Are you the type of person who has difficulty moving your great idea from that initial idea stage to the “actually doing something about them” stage? Michael offers a strategy in his quirky book Get Unstuck & Get Going and yes, once again it involves questions! Ask yourself: What will I do?, What will get in the way?, What will support me?, and Who will keep me accountable? As Michael reminds us, “Ideas aren’t enough to get yourself unstuck. You also need an action plan.”
3. The Seven Essential Coaching Questions
   “Coaching for development is about turning the focus from the issue to the person dealing with the issue, the person who’s managing the fire,” writes Michael in his latest book, The Coaching Habit. When someone comes to you for advice, Michael suggests asking one or more of the following questions, which he has dubbed the Seven Essential Coaching Questions:
4. The Kickstart Question: “What’s on your mind?”
5. The AWE Question: “And what else?”
7. The Focus Question: “What’s the real challenge here for you?”
9. The Foundation Question: “What do you want?”
11. The Lazy Question: “How can I help?”
13. The Strategic Question: “If you’re saying yes to this, what are you saying no to?”
15. The Learning Question: “What was most useful to you about this conversation?”

Michael is going to delve deeper and unpack the idea of mastering the art of questions by asking more questions, rather than jumping in with solutions on Friday’s webinar. If you haven’t registered yet click here to claim your spot. See you there!