Are We Asking the Right Questions?

When we’ve been intentional about really listening to what our team members share with us, there’s generally no shortage of information to process. The key is often in sifting through it all to find the pieces that matter most; to them as individuals as well as for us to understand what makes them tick. Learning which questions we can ask that will provide us with the most applicable information is critical. And quite frankly, not asking the right questions is often exactly what leads down a rabbit hole; taking time we likely don’t have to spare while yielding little (if any) detail that helps us add value to our team members down the road.

Over the course of my career, I’ve done thousands of interviews to fill positions. I’ve also been part of audit teams analyzing the effectiveness of various processes and procedures within different organizations. And that’s not even considering all the behavior-based safety observations or incident investigations I’ve been involved with to identify why someone chose to do something that risked injury. Through all that, I’ve learned just how important it is to be very specific with the questions I ask and to leave them open-ended to minimize the chance of getting only a yes or no response.

Each of the scenarios I just described involve a need for a certain type of information. My questions needed to be framed in a way that provided me with as much of that detail as possible so I could make a reasonable decision in the limited time I had to process it. When it comes to learning as much as we can about our team members, simply asking “how was your weekend?” won’t likely draw much that helps us do that. But asking “what did you do over the weekend that helped you recharge?” or “what did you enjoy most about the recent trip you took your family on?” can result in feedback we may never get otherwise. As we develop stronger relationships with those team members, we can dig even deeper by asking about their career goals or the specific part of our business they’d like to learn more about. In doing that, we often open a door to discuss options for growth and development, as well as the steps they can take to position themselves for future opportunities.

As I think back over the last three decades, I can point to several folks I reported to (and a few peers) who absolutely did that for me. The questions they asked and the guidance they provided based on my responses served me incredibly well as worked to hone in on my own definite purpose. Truth be told, the fact they showed genuine interest in me and my career also earned a significant level of buy-in with them as leaders and to the bigger purpose we were working to achieve in those organizations!

When we get answers to those intentional and open-ended questions, we’d also do well to press them on why they’ve responded the way they have. Inevitably, some responses will be what they think we expect them to say. Some may be based on the perception of their peer group. But when we can get a response they’re truly passionate about, we’ve got a real shot at helping identify a clear purpose that drives them. 

Even then though, what we hear will only be part of the equation. I’ve often heard the phrase, “trust only action,” and that certainly has relevance here. I’ve heard a ton of people tell me about grand goals and dreams for their future but only a select few have backed their words with behaviors that can lead to accomplishing those goals and dreams. Asking the right questions and then intently listening to the replies can give us a tremendous foundation for understanding what motivates our teams, but they will show us even more through their daily behavior so we’ll pick up there soon.