Start With the Question, Not the Answer
“I’m getting a new car!” Wow! Shiny, “new car smell”, all the latest bells and whistles.
In reality, I’m not. A new car is not what I need. What I really need is a new alternator, or a set of snow tires, or even just a good wax job. There’s really not much wrong with my old beast, and at least I own the thing, outright.
But if I followed my heart, I’d be at the dealership this very minute. And then I’d be broke.
The problem with humans is that we more often than not skip the question, skip the logic, and go straight to the answer. And typically the “answer” is the thing we want, not the thing we need.
The problem only gets worse in business settings: “We just have to get the new software”, “Let’s hire James”, or “You’re not producing!” By going straight to our preordained conclusion, we’re skipping the hard and sometimes awkward questions such as: “What’s going on with our software?”, “Is it actually time for a new hire?”, or “It seems your numbers are off. Can we talk?”. By jumping over the questions, we foreclose all kinds of valuable discussions and viable alternative solutions.
If the proposal is to get a dish of ice cream, no harm. But if the proposal is to move the factory to another city, there will be plenty of repercussions. That’s true even if we’ve been thorough in managing the process, and a lot more so if we decided on a whim.
By forcing ourselves to be clear and precise about the issue “My car won’t start”, we then have to ask ourselves the first logical question, “Why not?” Once we solve this, we can ask ourselves, “What’s it going to cost to fix it?” If the answer is a silly amount of money, we can properly ask ourselves, “Is there a better alternative? Is this the time for a new car? If so, what kind of car do I need, and how will I pay for it?”
By struggling through the process (nobody pretends this is easy) we serve ourselves well, because we greatly reduce the likelihood of rash decisions and buyer’s remorse.
And for those watching us, if we start with the question and not the answer, we demonstrate that we are not emotion-driven and self-centered. Even if the conclusion is not what the listener had wanted, respect for the process and the decision maker is retained.
This is not to ignore the value of listening to the gut in decision making, or the importance of keeping in touch with our subconscious selves. Readers of the Friday Briefing will remember a lot of tub-thumping in favour of those notions (https://us12.campaign-archive.com/?e=[UNIQID]&u=c5b0c09025ad045bf11bb02f5&id=2c9899bd0c) . Yes, we have a subconscious, but we also have an intellect.
To actually lead with “the answer” is fine in Jeopardy, just not in real life.