454: How to Ask Better Questions, with David Marquet

22 snips

Feb 10, 2020

David Marquet, the former commander of the USS Santa Fe and author of 'Leadership is Language,' dives into the art of questioning in leadership. He highlights the seven sins of questioning, emphasizing that leading questions often stifle genuine dialogue. By discussing the tragic El Faro disaster, he showcases how effective communication can prevent crises. Marquet advocates for clear, open-ended inquiries and creating psychological safety in teams, urging leaders to shift from self-affirming to self-educating questions for better organizational performance.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

El Faro Tragedy

The El Faro, a 790-foot ship, sank in a hurricane despite modern equipment.
All 33 crew members died due to ineffective communication and a flawed leadership structure.

INSIGHT

Red Work vs. Blue Work

Modern work requires everyone to be both a thinker (blue work) and a doer (red work).
The traditional separation of these roles hinders effective leadership and decision-making.

ADVICE

Avoid Question Stacking

Avoid question stacking; ask one clear question at a time.
Give others time to respond and listen actively to their perspective.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

David Marquet: Leadership is Language David Marquet is the former commander of the U.S.S. Santa Fe, a nuclear-powered attack submarine. Under David’s command, the ship had an impressive turnaround, achieving the highest retention and operational standings in the Navy. David is the author of the bestseller Turn the Ship Around: A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders* and has just released his new book, Leadership is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say and What You Don’t*. In this conversation, David and I explore the seven sins of questioning. David shares the story of the ill-fated El Faro and how we can discover better information in leadership by making the shift from self-affirming to self-educating. Key Points A leading question comes from a place of thinking the person is wrong, or that you have the answer. I hear this a lot from people who think they have the right answer but don’t want to use say so, so they use the Socratic method as a “teaching moment.” It’s annoying and arrogant. Self-affirming questions are often binary questions with a special motivation: to coerce agreement and make us feel good about the decision we have already made. Seven Ways to Ask Better Questions: Instead of question stacking, try one and done. Instead of a teaching moment, try a learning moment. Instead of a dirty question, try a clear question. Instead of a binary question, start the question with “what” or “how.” Instead of a “why” question, try “tell me more.” Instead of a self-affirming question, try self-educating questions. Instead of jumping to the future, start with the present, past, then future. Resources Mentioned Leadership is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say and What You Don’t* by David Marquet Turn the Ship Around: A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders* by David Marquet David Marquet’s website Related Episodes Find Courage to Speak When It Matters Most, with Allan McDonald (episode 229) These Coaching Questions Get Results, with Michael Bungay Stanier (episode 237) The Path of Humble Leadership, with Edgar Schein and Peter Schein (episode 363) How to Build Psychological Safety, with Amy Edmondson (episode 404) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic.