Remember what it felt like in school when the teacher asked a question and you knew the answer?
Your eyes would get big. Your pulse would quicken. And your hand would shoot up – you might even wave it back and forth to show the teacher how confident you were.
There was no better feeling than answering a question correctly in front of the whole class. You’d quietly congratulate yourself and feel superior for hours.
We still crave those feelings. We want to be prepared, we want to look smart, and we want to get ahead.
When meeting with clients, prospects and colleagues, our natural instinct is to answer questions just as quickly as we can.
But that’s not always the best idea.
In fact, our success in business is often determined by the amount of information we gather than by the amount of information we dispense.
We have to suspend ego and be able to remind ourselves that we don’t know everything we should about a situation.
Which means we should be answering questions with more questions. It’s not being evasive or dense.
It’s about being curious and thorough. It’s called reversing.
Here are a few examples:
- “Good question, why did you bring that up just now?
- “That’s an interesting question, and the reason you ask is?
- “Excellent question. Can you give me an example of what that looks like here?”
Reversing makes sure you’re asking the right questions. It helps you gather information for solving problems that matter. It also helps lower defenses and gets people talking.
Most importantly, it helps you have a real conversation that is engaging, emotional and productive.
When you master reversing you will get more information and an honest assessment of a situation.
Don’t be afraid to reverse questions and conversations for better understanding – and better results.
Have a great week.
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