Build Trust - Ask pointed questions
I am sure you are familiar with the phrase, “There are no stupid questions”. I completely disagree with that. Of course there are stupid questions! Take, for example, the question I was posed one night while out for dinner with three friends. I ordered three cheeseburgers and one hamburger. The waitress smiled nicely and asked, “Do you want cheese on the hamburger?” Based on any given context, there can be stupid questions. On the plus side, simply asking “Why?” can be a mighty powerful question. If you receive answers like: “We have always done it that way.” “Because!” or “I was told to,” you are probably going to be glad you asked. Why? You do not need to be aggressive with the questions, or even ask them in public, but you need to make sure that others have given the appropriate amount of care and attention to whatever issues they are tackling.
Also, the benefits of building teams that trust each other are that the team members themselves start to ask the questions. When the group thinking is to ask pointed questions, and not just rubber stamp ideas, then you know your team is starting to fire on all cylinders. They will be engaged, hungry for knowledge, and hold each other accountable to higher standards. This will inevitably lead them to holding you to higher standards, but as you should always aim to hire people smarter than yourself, this should not be an issue. Again, you have to lead by example, but by questioning decisions at every level, you ensure a greater level of attention to details, pride in peoples’ worth and the sense that what they are working toward is worthwhile.
|
|
|
