Ways that creating a question-based culture improves leadership

Gary B. Cohen emphasizes in his book, “Just Ask Leadership,” that effective leaders should ask more questions as they advance, rather than giving more answers, to empower and engage their teams in finding solutions and taking on responsibilities in business. Here are some insights from Cohen: Improving vision

Good vision requires insight from all levels of the organization. Forward-leaning questions can illuminate the values of both the leader and the team. This, in turn, will enable employee buy-in, and good choices with regard to interacting with customers and future goals. Of course, you as a leader need to be open and honest to generate trust, as well as ask questions. When there is little trust and a feeling that leaders communicate only in sound bites designed to manipulate goodwill, any vision ends up being regarded as meaningless.

Building unity and cooperation

It’s important to listen respectfully to coworkers’ questions and opinions since they’re all a part of the team. This creates a culture of trust. It requires asking good and fair questions - not “gotcha” questions. Getting everyone to participate isn’t always easy, but when coworkers realize their ideas have value and the organization is receptive to them, they’re more apt to share.

Creating better decisions

Most leaders make too many decisions and fall into the trap of doing others’ work. The best decisions are often made by those down the chain of command, not up. Get the right answers by asking the right questions. In order to avoid the blame game, it’s important to know who is responsible for specific problems.

Motivating to action

“Because I said so,” is not a phrase that will inspire the team. Ask for success. Create a sense of urgency, appeal to people’s desire to be remembered, and energize coworkers by using shared responses — such as asking a group to say, “Agree,” after a consensus is reached. If you tell coworkers how to do their jobs, you are essentially limiting their options and stifling their initiative, says Cohen. You are not leading. Asking questions isn’t just about not knowing the answers — these questions lead to fresh ideas, committed action, and the creation of a new rank of leaders.