The end of a Discover Your Best Thinking with Precision Q+A workshop can feel like New Year’s Eve. It is an opportunity to think and communicate differently, and to use our new Q+A skills to think and collaborate deeper. But like many New Year's resolutions, the changes we swore we were going to make can soon be forgotten if we don’t establish a routine. Why It’s So Hard to Change Our workplace conversations differ dramatically from social conversations, where questions are often … [Read more...]
Social Intelligence
Three Ways to Use Questions to Attune to Others
“We all live in the world our questions create,” according to David Cooperrider, the founder of Appreciative Inquiry. That observation is a testament to the power of questions to shape so much of our life at work -- what we ask sets the stage for who we will become together. In addition, how we ask sets the stage for much of how we feel, how willing we are to explore, and how deeply we are willing to join together with others to accomplish our aims. Warren Berger, author of A More Beautiful … [Read more...]
The one question that yields better focus
We have all noticed that our attention is in constant demand. Multiple communication channels, myriad interruptions, and technological distractions can keep us from bringing our full presence to our work. At Vervago, we have recently re-named a category of question, formerly Go/NoGo Questions, as Focus Questions, reflecting the growing importance of controlling our energy and attention in our work. This growing prominence of Focus Questions for the quality of work is reflected in psychologist … [Read more...]
So Much To Say, So Little Time
Developing expertise in our work is fulfilling, and when customers and colleagues call on us it feels gratifying. As we spend time in a domain, we come to see all the nuance and detail. But expertise also comes with a hidden cost: we are inclined to share all that detail with others who don’t need or understand it. If we don’t disrupt this dynamic, it hinders us from effectively making use of our expertise. The 4Practices of Precision Answering offer a helpful path toward making our expertise … [Read more...]
Escape from unnecessary meetings with grace
We don’t mean to sound irreverent, but when was the last time you asked: “Do I need to be here?” Go/NoGo Questions are invaluable in helping us examine the bigger picture of how we use precious resources at work. Almost all of us feel like we have too many urgent things to do, too many meetings to attend, and too many channels of communication to monitor. So, we need to be asking ourselves and our colleagues more often: Do I need to be here? And do you? It is easy to work in a reactive mode, … [Read more...]
Conquering the fear of the stupid question
Ever catch yourself saying something like, "I'm sorry if this is a stupid question, but..."? We all use mindless preambles, usually without thinking about the impact on our credibility. But as with many things in Precision Q+A, preambles can become more precise and powerful. A preamble is a short statement preceding a question, that makes our intent or motivation clear. Preambles are useful because they defuse a potentially awkward moment (such as the worry about a "stupid" question) and they do … [Read more...]