Leadership is often associated with having answers.
As leaders we’re rewarded for expertise, decisiveness, speed, and problem solving. Someone brings us a problem, and we immediately jump to a solution. A meeting stalls and we step in to move things forward. Something feels unclear and our instinct is to critique, correct, or redirect.
In many ways, these behaviors help us establish credibility and prove that we are competent and trustworthy. But leadership at scale is no longer about personally having all the answers yourself.
It’s now more about understanding other people’s thinking, perspectives, and expertise. It’s about helping individuals and teams think more critically and collaboratively about complex problems.
The hidden costs
If you continue down the “expert only track,” your team may begin relying on you more than they should. Ownership in their work can decline because you’re doing all the thinking. You might become the bottleneck for your team’s thinking and decision making. Or important information doesn’t get surfaced or assumptions go unchallenged. In the end your teams think less independently and less strategically.
The simplest leadership tool: ASK A QUESTION
Thoughtful, open-ended questions are one of the most underutilized leadership tools. And yet, they can significantly elevate leadership impact in ways many people don’t fully appreciate.
WHY? HOW?
Questions create ownership because when people articulate their own thinking, their commitment to the idea naturally increases. Questions reduce defensiveness because people feel invited to reflect rather than feeling corrected. Questions surface valuable information leaders might otherwise miss assumptions, concerns, competing priorities, risks, or the real issue underneath the surface problem.
And all of this extra data and insight will challenge or sharpen your thinking and possibly lead you to make better decisions. You’ll also gain more insight on your team, your boss, senior stakeholders and clients - including how they think.
Open-ended questions also build trust because you’re demonstrating you care about their perspective. Questions can increase accountability because it can create an atmosphere of collaboration. And questions reveal what people care about — what I often call their “currency” — which becomes incredibly important when trying to influence and collaborate effectively across teams and organizations.
This applies at every level of leadership.
Questions are not a sign of weakness or lack of preparedness. In many ways, they are one of the most versatile and strategic leadership tools you have.
Try out these questions
Some of the most effective leadership questions are actually surprisingly simple:
“What would need to be true for this to work?”
“What challenge, if solved, would make the biggest difference?”
“What are we not talking about that we probably should be?”
“What might be the root issue underneath this?”
“What are we implicitly saying no to by saying yes?”
“What data would change your mind?”
I also particularly love this question for senior leaders:
“What feedback do you have for me?”
Because the more senior leaders become, the less honest feedback they often receive.
Better Questions
At its core, asking thoughtful, open-ended questions is not about giving up control or withholding perspective. It’s about elevating the quality of thinking in the room. And when the quality of thinking improves, the outcomes usually improve as well.
One of the biggest myths in leadership is that great leaders always have all the answers.
But many of the strongest leaders I work with have developed a different habit.
They ask better questions.
Next up…
Episode 7: The Leadership Power of Tiny Experiments with Winnie da Silva
I work with leaders who are serious about growth and who want to see real personal, professional, and business results. If you’re ready to take your leadership to the next level or empower your teams for success, I’m here to help.
Reach out to me directly at winnie@winnifred.org or check out my website at www.winniedasilva.com to learn more about my work in coaching executives, developing critical leadership skills, and working with clients to build effective team. In addition to finding me here on Substack, you can also find me on LinkedInand YouTube
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