4 Steps To Encourage Employees To Ask Better Questions | Leadership Espresso Shot 52
Aug 9, 2023
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The podcast discusses the importance of asking questions and how leaders can encourage their employees to do so. It shares four steps for creating an environment where employees feel comfortable asking questions. The podcast also explores the role of questioning and curiosity in leadership, leading to knowledge and unique insights in the workplace.
Encouraging employees to ask questions fosters a psychologically safe workplace environment that values curiosity and continuous learning.
Leaders can create an environment where employees feel comfortable asking questions by leading by example, encouraging challenging questions, actively listening, and recognizing the benefits of a questioning culture.
Deep dives
The Importance of Asking Questions for Learning
Children naturally ask questions as a way of learning about the world. However, as adults, we often stop asking questions due to fear of appearing foolish or thinking that we should already know the answers. Asking questions is a critical skill that helps us seek knowledge, develop a better understanding, and expose ourselves to new ideas. It is essential for leaders to encourage their employees to ask questions, as it fosters a psychologically safe and inclusive workplace environment that values curiosity and continuous learning.
Steps to Create an Environment for Questions
There are four steps leaders can take to create an environment where employees feel comfortable asking questions. First, leaders should lead by example and show that questioning is valued within the organization. Second, leaders should focus on the employee's initiative and encourage them to ask challenging questions that can highlight potential concerns or unseen opportunities. Third, leaders should actively listen to the questions being asked and provide meaningful responses. Finally, leaders should recognize that building a culture of questioning takes time and practice, but the benefits include gaining unique insights, fostering a sense of belonging, and encouraging continuous improvement.
This might come as a surprise, but one of my favourite things about delivering a leadership keynote is the Q&A session I have afterwards. I love this part not only because it allows me to hear what key insights or ideas have taken hold with my audience, but also because sometimes the questions I get asked spur on new ideas I want to expand on and explore.For example, my TED talk “Forget Passion - Purpose is the Real Spice of Life” was inspired by a question I was asked after one of my keynotes where one of the attendees wanted to learn more about my own leadership journey and what inspired me to take that particular path.Recently, I delivered another in-person keynote and during the Q&A session I was asked yet another one of those thought-provoking questions whose answer was something I wanted to expand on and share.The question was from a leader who’d been working on becoming more comfortable with asking questions and after hearing my keynote he had a question he wanted to ask me.His question – “How do I encourage my employees to get better at asking questions, too?”It’s such a great question that, just like my TED talk, I wanted to share the ideas it gave rise to with those who weren’t present to hear my answer to this leader's question. And so, in this edition of my Leadership Espresso Shot series, I share four simple steps any leader can implement towards creating an environment where employees feel psychologically safe to ask any question that’s on their mind.https://open.spotify.com/episode/2hg6lmgAQaPEz2eP3IOkug?si=70e380f4c5504d08