“He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool forever” – Chinese proverb.
What’s the one thing that the world’s leading innovators share with children? They both learn through asking questions. It’s the simplest and most effective way of learning. Yet somehow we have forgotten this lesson as we get older. We just don’t value questioning as much as we should.
Not asking good or even enough questions has a direct impact on the quality of choices you make. Habituating the art of asking questions enables you to gain deep insight, develop more innovative solutions and to arrive at better decision-making.
Brilliant thinkers and scientists never stop asking questions. “Asking questions is the single most important habit for innovative thinkers,” says Paul Sloane, the UK’s top leadership speaker on innovation.
- Newton: “Why does an apple fall from a tree but, why does the moon not fall into the Earth?”
- Darwin: “Why do the Galapagos Islands have so many species not found elsewhere?”
- Einstein: “What would the universe look like if I rode through it on a beam of light?”
Asking these kinds of basic questions started the process that led to their great breakthroughs. And asking questions is as relevant today. Only by constantly asking why can you find better products. In his book “A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas”, Warren Berger cited the example of Edwin H. Land, who invented the Polaroid camera in response to his 3 year old daughter asking why the camera that they used couldn’t produce a photo immediately. There are plenty of other cases; Airbnb exists as a response to the question “why should you be stuck without a bed if I’ve got an extra air mattress?”
The list is endless, as many companies and even entire industries can be traced back to a single question.
How do we master the art and science of asking effective questions and how do we make it a habit?
- Create an environment where curiosity is welcomed and rewarded.
- Become a keen observer of everything you see, hear and experience.
- Look at the world with fresh eyes, question the familiar, assume nothing is obvious.
- Understand the power of different types of questions – how they should be used and when.
- Keep asking why till you can go no further.
“Good questioning should stimulate, provoke, inform and inspire” says Sloane, while Berger feels it can “help us learn, explore the unknown and adapt to change”. What could be a great question that could shift the way you or your organisation perceive or think about something that has the potential to act as a catalyst for change?