294: Warren Berger - How To Ask More Beautiful Questions

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Episode #294: Warren Berger - How To Ask More Beautiful Questions

• Commonalities of sustaining excellence:
  • Intelligent... Smart
  • Hard-working
  • Ambitious
  • Humble -- This is a really important quality.  No ego or arrogance.  They admit when they are wrong.  Willing to acknowledge when they're wrong.  They are open to listening to others and their ideas.
  • Curiosity - They are not trapped by their own expertise.  They are open minded, curious, looking around.
  • Able to adapt
  • Communication skill -- The willingness and ability to ask great questions
• The genesis of becoming a questionoligist -- Warrens calls himself a questionoligist.  The art and science of asking questions.
  • He originally was a journalist and developed a skill for asking questions doing that job.
  • "Questioning was a tool of the trade"
• Warren was writing about design and the idea of questioning kept coming up with leaders in business.
  • "The ability to ask good questions would lead them thru the innovation cycle."
• The holy trinity of questioning:
  • Why?  Trying to understand
  • What if?  Ideation, brainstorming
  • How?  Get practical.  "How can we take the first step?"
• Big open ended questions -- They are the stems
  • Each one does something completely different
• Questioning as a manager:
  • Find time to have the conversations and ask questions of your team members
  • Must be thoughtful and prepared
  • We've gotten out of the habit of being questioners, and now it's always about doing.  "Slow down, ask questions.  Why are we pursuing this strategy? Understand why?"

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