Check your asking-to-telling ratio.

Leadership is about allowing others the chance to flourish.  And you do that by asking questions.  ~Gary Cohen

In past decades most supervisors could do their employee's job, and leaders of the organization could do many of the jobs as well.  But today, far fewer bosses know how to do an employee's job.  Therefore, moving from telling to asking is no longer optional, it's essential.  Leaders who default to "telling" as opposed to "asking" and helping staff develop their own critical thinking skills so they can be more self-directed, may actually be reinforcing a sense of shortsightedness or dependence that clogs up the system and makes the organization less agile.

Thinking back to our high school debate teams, we learned that persuasion happened through well-prepared logic using facts and figures.  Many organizations use this same approach.  If you present your logic, complete buy-in throughout the organization is certain.  Not so much.  Unfortunately, we have also been trained to argue when we're presented with someone else's logic (just watch a little primetime TV).  Rather than stating logic, ask a series of questions that will lead your staff to work out the logic on their own.  Your staff will reach their own conclusion based on your questions.  They will buy-in to a conclusion they have reached on their own much faster (and longer) than they will buy-in to a statement you make, even if it is supported by logic.

This week I came across an article in Forbes online entitled, Ask Great Questions: Leadership Skills of Socrates.  One of the points I found especially helpful.  The author, Michael Lindenmayer, suggested focusing your questions on three P's.

The three P's are: possibilities, probabilities and priorities. These three are sequentially linked. Apply different questions to the different categories. Certain questions generate possibilities. Other questions sharpen the team's ability to assess the probable outcome of potential decisions. The third set of questions help to empower team members to prioritize. While Socrates engaged in philosophical dialogues over long periods of time, you have a venture to run. And that means taking action. Learn to apply different questions to the three P's; it will help advance your endeavor.

Gary Cohen, author of Just Ask Leadership says, "Leadership is about allowing others the chance to flourish.  And you do that by asking questions.  This empowers coworkers to find solutions, embrace responsibility, and become accountable. Moreover, it opens the door to greater productivity and creativity. Indeed, more than ever before, leaders can't know everything. By seeking others' input, they can inspire powerful and positive change."

So tomorrow morning, when we wake up, let's ask ourselves which great questions we will bring to our organization that will advance our mission and allow others to flourish.