Preparing for meetings – questions matter!
When preparing for an important meeting, most leaders focus their valuable time on preparing the agenda and ensuring that the workspace is ready for participants. As important as these tasks are to the success of the meeting, there is another task just as important – if not more so. Selecting a good question to guide a conversation and support healthy decision making. In fact, the right questions foster vital conversation and connection!
Asking the right question is not always easy. Some questions are better than others. Sometimes they shut down conversation and creativity. Questions can create winners and losers by dividing the group. Often a question is closed – leaving only a “yes” or “no” response available. Yet, the best question will move us beyond a simple “yes” or “no” answer to surface our shared feelings, facts, experience and impact. Learning the difference and applying the lessons will make you a better leader.
Review the following categories of questions and examples to use with your leadership group when working through your next important issue. These questions can foster synergistic conversation and lead to creative options as you search for decisions.
Types of Questions
There are 4 basic types of question that you can ask:
1. Objective
2. Reflective
3. Interpretive
4. Decision
A good discussion will use each of these types of questions to guide the conversation.
Objective Questions
Objective questions focus on data and facts. They help focus people’s attention on the relevant details to be considered when making a decision. Here are some examples of an objective question.
- What opportunities can you see in this situation?
- Are there assumptions that we need to test or challenge here in thinking about this matter?
- Why is it important to us to make this decision at this time?
- Who will be affected by this decision?
Reflective questions
A reflective question will help people get in touch with their internal response to the issue before them for consideration. Here are a couple of examples:
- What opportunities can you see in this situation?
- Is there a part of this proposal that makes you feel like cheering? Excites you?
- In a word: what does it feel like to be in this situation?
- Does this proposal makes you angry? Sceptical? Frustrated?
- What does this proposal accomplish for you? Why is it important?
- Share what has real meaning for you from what you have heard so far? Have you been surprised? How? What challenged you?
- As you make this decision – what values do you hold dear ?
Interpretive Questions
An interpretive question helps make sense or give meaning to the proposal under consideration. Here are a couple of examples:
- What is the intent of this proposal? Please tell us what you see as the key points?
- What additional questions does this proposal raise for you? How would you answer them?
- Will this proposal accomplish its purpose?
- What has been your/our major learning, insight, or discovery so far?
- If this proposal is to get your support, what changes do you recommend?
- What needs our immediate attention going forward?
- What are the pros and cons of this option?
- Does this option deal effectively with the issue before us?
Decision Questions
Decision questions draw you closer to a resolution by naming the implications for this new direction. Some questions in this category include:
- Share with us what you think it would take to create change on this issue?
- In this proposal what are you willing to commit to accomplishing?
- What does this proposal call forth from us? What is it beckoning us to be or do?
- How can we support one another in taking the next steps? Can you tell us what contribution you are willing to make?
- What is the impact of this decision on our life? What consequences will you need to be prepared to face?
Healthy conversations are nurtured!
It is important to devote adequate time to choosing or crafting questions that can support a group deliberating together on an important matter. Most leaders simply put a proposal before a group with the words: “well, what do you think?” This doesn’t help a group to discuss the heart and soul of an issue or to make a decision that they can live with in the future.
Take adequate time in selecting the questions that will guide your group as it makes its next decision. Be sure that they include conversation starters that focus on facts, feelings, relations and implementation. This way you will not need to revisit decisions at a later time for reconsideration.