Ask Cutting Questions to Cut Through Ambiguity

How do you cut to the chase? How do you clear the air of ambiguity and get to facts?

Ask cutting questions.

My manager, Per , doesn’t ask a lot of questions.

He asks the right ones.

Here are some examples:

Who’s on board? Who are five customers that stand behind you?
Next steps?
What does your gut say?
Is it working? Is it effective?
What would “x” say? (for example, what would your peers say?)
What’s their story?
Where’s your prioritized list of scenarios?

As simple as it sounds, having five separate customers stand behind you is a start. I’m in the habit of litmus checking my path early on to see who’s on board or to find the resistance.

As customers get on board, my confidence goes up. I’ve also seen this cutting question work well with startups. I’ve asked a few startups about their five customers.

Some had great ideas, but no customers on board. The ones that had at least five are still around.

At the end of any meeting, Per never fails to ask “next steps?“, and the meeting quickly shifts from talk to action.

“Is it working?” is a pretty cutting question. It’s great because it forces you to step back and reflect on your results and consider a change in approach.

The Ultimate Personal Effectiveness Principles
10 Free Leadership Tools for Work and Life
Agile Results for Teams and Leaders
How To Think Like a Microsoft Executive
Leadership Skills for Making Things Happen
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective IT Leaders
The Art of the Agile Retrospective