Ask More Questions

Ask More Questions

     First thing this morning, right after I got out of bed, my wife told me I was “exuberant!” Exuberant! I had not even gotten started yet….I hadn’t had a workout, I hadn’t begun working, I hadn’t even gotten going and I was already exuberant. Perhaps this exuberance is related to Slow Down! and Take a Chill Pill.

Students naturally ask questions

     In my exuberance I am always ready to go, and I jump right in there to give answers very quickly. Do you ask more questions or do you give more answers? Highly competitive people are probably more inclined to give answers than the average person. We are always moving very fast, ready to go, and are “exuberant” in our willingness to race to an answer.

     So, my next resolution is to ask more questions. The truth is, we all sometimes act like we know more than we do. Of course, none of us knows everything, and one way we learn is by asking questions. In fact, children learn how to ask questions at a very early age.

     Our own children could get us trapped in the “why?” game very quickly. They always wanted to know more . . . they still do. Perhaps we can learn from children that we learn more when we ask more questions.

     Asking questions instead of giving answers (or even direction) is probably a more effective form of leadership. Asking questions gets others involved and participating in achieving a result. Perhaps the results are even more meaningful.

     The art of asking more questions will probably take some practice and some patience, so I will need you to help me along the way. The good part is I will probably become more interesting, more effective, and learn more along the way.

Can you help me ask more questions?

David