"It takes some bravery to ask questions if you don't know what the answer will be," says Bob Sutton. "Leave time for questions, and then assess how much meeting time you spend asking versus telling people what to do." The context of a meeting matters more than any question or statement - it's about open questions, not close questions.
The information you receive is only as strong as the questions you ask. In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, Stanford Graduate School of Business lecturers Matt Abrahams and Debra Schifrin discuss how to craft inquiries that can lead to better communication outcomes. Questions are also instrumental in building relationships, Schifrin points out. “If you’re asking questions, you’re signaling to the other person that you value them. You’re taking time to listen to their answers.”
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