Ask a better question to get a better answer
“The 80–20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, is an aphorism which asserts that 80% of outcomes (or outputs) result from 20% of all causes (or inputs) for any given event. In business, a goal of the 80–20 rule is to identify inputs that are potentially the most productive and make them the priority.”
A good question may just answer the rest of your doubts and get things done with more efficiency and effectiveness.
Crafting out a good question (the 20%) is not easy and this is where many will always get it wrong by asking one that may end up with a long reply that risk getting nowhere, or worse, an answer that doesn’t exactly unlock the question mark that you have in the first place but more confusion instead.
I always encourage the clients that engaged BlackStorm Consulting to put a question out as simple as possible in plain language that all parties can understand.
Focus on “What, Why, When, Where, How” into your questioning and how you can help the person better.
- Ask the question in the manner that the other party is able to break a complicated answer into small parts but yet about to frame them into a Yes or No, Left or Right, Up or Down type of the first reply.
- The question allows the person to expand the reply into multiple parts that you can also digest and understand too.
- Don’t ask but provide the background reason for your question, so that the other party is able to frame a better reply and lead to explain in details.
- Don’t hear but listen. Take the cue from the tone, the gesture, the facial expression from the party answering you, so that you can frame the details into the original question to gain insights.
Practice asking better questions by putting yourself in the shoe of the one who is replying with a better-crafted answer.
