Question and win

There is no answer without a question. In any activity, questioning is a key part of effective communication skills. Particularly in business your ability to carry out your role effectively is in large part influenced by your questioning skills.

We are all naturally inclined to be inquisitive. Frequently little children ask questions persistently. It's their way of learning. After all, how can they increase their knowledge about how the world works without questioning?

However, over time we are taught to drop this habit. Parents would normally say things like "stop being so nosey" or "stop asking so many questions."

Most professionals tend to believe that questioning is easy but it's not really so. It's a skill that needs to be consciously developed. Garbage in, garbage out, is a popular truth, often said in relation to computer systems. The same principle applies to communications in general: If you ask the wrong questions, you'll probably get the wrong answer, or at least not quite what you're hoping for.

Clarity of your answer depends on the clarity of your question

It's paramount for employees to understand the operating environment, competitor strategies and all key stakeholders of the business as accurately as possible for effective response.

To receive, process and comprehend information in context demands effective questioning.

Creating and asking good questions takes time and practice. The clarity of the answer depends entirely on the clarity of the question. Thinking without questioning 'is like drinking without swallowing.

It is obvious that anyone who has better questioning skills is likely to have more knowledge and understanding than a person who has a lower level of skill.

It takes more than just knowledge or understanding of different question types to make someone a good questioner.

Thinking without questioning is like drinking without swallowing. Thinking is critical for strategising and problem solving. There are some common questioning techniques, and its very important to learn these techniques and acquire and develop the art.

It's a discipline that has to be inculcated and I would encourage you to acquire that. I didn't want to sound rhetorical by sharing with you the techniques to develop questioning skills, you can do your research, read and understand. But what's equally important is to stay vigilant and learn from people who do this well. You would see the strong co-relation between right questioning and effective solution. So keep questioning for the best solution.

No question is dumb or stupid

There is no such thing as a stupid question. It's a matter of perception. While some things may appear basic and common sense to one, they may not be to another. Believe that everyone has the right to knowledge and that everyone is free to ask his or her query without any hesitation.

This should be encouraged in organisations for new dimensions. Sometimes people ask questions, to which the answers seem so obvious, that make it hard to believe the questioner is serious.

But this should not be a reason to discourage employees from asking questions.

Questions are good to ask and no question should be considered dumb, no matter how far-fetched it is.

A question is an attempt to learn something new, and that is always smiled upon in all societies. Space for questioning is space for innovation and creativity and that's wealth.