Better Questions? Better Answers?

Smarties are hungry for better answers. Better answers allow you to do better. How do you do better? You ask better questions. Better questions show that you care. Better questions show you are invested. Better questions help you.

You probably know the difference between open and closed questions but could you use them even better? This is where the magic happens.

Need to get to a conclusion on something? In a hurry? Need clarity? Ask closed questions. They are binary. They are either/or. They are unambiguous. They are quick.

Need to scan someone’s brain? Have some time on your hands? Go wide and ask open questions. They encourage expansive, non-binary answers that produce a picture. They are rarely either/or. They could be ambiguous. They help you connect to someone or something in a deeper way.

Are you going to be better at asking questions now? Oops, sorry, meant to say: how are you going to be better at asking questions now?

An excerpt from Harvard-endorsed book, The Smarts: Big Little Hacks to Take You a Long Way at Work, by Saj Jetha (Penguin 2019) available on Amazon.

Saj is founder of the multi-award winning The Smarty Train, a training and talent consultancy with a mission to unlock talent everywhere. www.thesmartytrain.com