« 230 |365 Measuring Time | Main | 232 |365 Food that connects us. »

May 12, 2010

231 |365 I have a question on my mind

Day231.jpgIs this train leaving or arriving?
 
It’s a question, and there is incredible power in questions. With great questions come amazing answers and stories. Because of questions, problems are solved and ideas are formed.
 
Yesterday, at a client who uses other companies, I asked, “What do our competitors do really well?” It’s an amazing question because you don’t get some canned answer of what they would like, rather you get a real answer about the service they enjoy. It also gives permission to ask, “What could they do better?”
 
Questions are the key to listening. They really are!
 
From time to time you will find people who have a different view to you (shock horror). You can either spend all your time trying to explain your view, OR you can spend all your time trying to understand their view by asking questions.
 
Talkers do the first. Listeners do the second.
 
Sometimes asking questions is really hard for both of you. But after you have listened and understood, you are almost always invited to share your opinion, to input into the conversation, to contribute.
 
AND
 
You will almost always say something wiser and more relevant.
 
All because you asked great questions.

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d83452a2a769e2014e884794a9970d

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference 231 |365 I have a question on my mind:

Comments

Feed You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

The comments to this entry are closed.

andrewnicol.net

  • andrewnicol.net sidebar Fanatical about people, social enterprise, reducing poverty, creative thinking, leadership, 365 photography, being a great Husband/Dad and God.

    My mantra is to 'lead and live vividly'.

    These are my ramblings and photos

    Follow Me

    Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join my Facebook Page Follow me on Twitter RSS Feed


    © 2006 – 2012 Andrew Nicol.
    All Rights Reserved.

My Other Accounts

Facebook LinkedIn Technorati Twitter Twitter YouTube

My Links