Stupid Questions…Please

Greetings.  Pity the poor new employee.  Eager to understand how things work so he or she can make a real difference.  But afraid to ask a "stupid" question out of fear that they might seem…"stupid."  As though they could learn all the essential stuff by osmosis or merely by watching us as we exude frenetic grace, beauty, and wisdom.

"Any questions?" we ask toward the end of their first day on the job.

"No, not really.  I'm kind of getting the hang of things."

"Are you sure?" we continue.

"Well I do have a few (million) questions, I suppose.  But I'm afraid they'll seem stupid."

"No they won't," we quickly respond.  "There is really no such thing as a stupid question."  (Or the equally clever reply that…"The only stupid question is the one you don't ask.")  But do we really mean it?  And will we be engaging, encouraging, and thoughtful if they do ask a really stupid question?  And, more importantly, will we continue to demonstrate our interest in all of their questions for as long as they stay in our organization?  Or, will we be quick to judge them and other employees by how brilliant or clueless their questions seem to be?

In fact, our ability to encourage stupid questions is vital to our success.  "Stupid" questions that:

• Point out areas of confusion.
• Challenge the obvious.
• Suggest gaps in our offerings and how we support them.
• Indicate that other companies might be smarter than we are.
• Cause us to think about the logic of our business models.
• Mirror the concerns of our valued customers.
• Question our use of technology.
• Underscore a chance to improve teamwork and collaboration.
• Ask us to look beyond the confines of our walls, industry, and expertise.
• Suggest that there might be better ways to do the things that matter most.
• Inquire about our real commitment to innovation.
• Cast doubt on our real adherence to the values stated on our website.

Meaningful innovation requires us to ask a lot of smart and "stupid" questions.  And to answer them in new and more valuable ways.  But we can't make this happen when we create a corporate culture that is afraid of asking stupid questions.  Afraid of asking questions that might suggest our ignorance or our lack of in-depth knowledge of the problem at hand.  Even when the same in-depth knowledge probably created the problem in the first place.

Instead, we should encourage people to ask any and all questions that matter to them and have a chance to make us better.  And it might not be a bad idea to give awards for the stupidest questions of the year–the ones with answers that ended up making us a more effective and valued company or organization.

We win in business and in life by asking a million questions.  It's the only way to ever really understand the world around us and all of its possibilities.  Maybe it's time to rethink the type of questions that really matter.  

Cheers and have a questionable remainder of the week!