Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that
it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories
were created by people who recognized a problem and turned
it into an opportunity.
— Joseph Sugarman
As a senior leader, the biggest problem I see in business today among new MBA School graduates is that somehow, with the amazing and instantaneous access to information via the Internet, we have lost the art of critical thinking. Nor does school curriculum help in this matter. Teachers are working from programs designed at the turn of the last century. What has resulted is a business education system where professors do more “telling” than “asking” and students can Google anything versus actually thinking through a problem as part of the entire solution.
Recently, I had a discussion with a well-known nuclear fusion scientist; he told me his biggest problem is that the new Ph.D. graduates he hires have no ability for critical thinking.
When I first became a leader and had people reporting to me, I soon discovered that the people I was leading had problems— work-related and personal. Problems that they liked to dump on me! I used to think, “This isn’t what I signed up for.” After all, being a leader was supposed to be about going to high-powered meetings and doing “lunch,” right?
Wrong!
People on my team had problems, and I thought that taking care of their issues was what leaders did. I then discovered that I was good at solving their problems. They would come into my office, sit down, dump their problems on my desk, and I would leap into action like some sort of steroid-charged superhero (minus the cape—although a cape would have been a nice touch). The problem dumpers would then happily stand up, spin around, and leave—dusting the symbolic dirt from their hands.
Word soon spread about my superhuman ability to take on all the worries of everyone in the company. Some days there seemed to be a line up outside my office. All that was missing was a “Take a Number” dispenser and magazines.
I found my days getting longer. I started coming in earlier and staying later—using off hours to do the paperwork and emails that were part of my job. I rationalized that this situation was the typical life of a leader. I justified it to my wife by saying, “this busy period is only temporary and it will get better.” It didn’t. Note: If you ever hear yourself saying that to one of your loved ones, then you are kidding yourself like I was.
Then my boss started to notice, and to my surprise, he was not happy about it at all. He even reprimanded me for not delivering results. I attempted to rationalize with him that I was delivering results, “Look at all the problems I am solving.” He simply replied that I was doing everyone else’s job, but they were paid to solve those problems. My job was to lead the team to deliver the results. He then left the room. He was like that. Give me shit and leave. Never did he give the new leader on the block any mentoring. Looking back on that now, I realize that made me stronger and a better leader by learning on my own what all great leaders know.
So I decided that was it! No more would I handle my people’s problems. I took the chairs out of my office so others would not come in, sit down, and unload. Forever innovative, they started to bring their own chairs with them! I decided not to comment on the problem they were attempting to dump on me. I would just sit there in silence and listen to them. I discovered that they then took the opportunity to dispatch more of their woes—occasionally even throwing in something from their personal lives. I realized the situation was not improving, and I wasn’t happy about it.
The solution didn’t come to me until I was at a strategy session with the senior team.
The facilitator was taking the group through a visioning exercise. She asked us to get into teams in front of different flip charts around the room. Then she instructed us that if there were no barriers at all in front of us, what would we do with the business? She threw out, “What would perfect look like?” As a young, newly minted manager, I watched my team members struggle with the question. It dawned on me that there was no such thing as “perfect,” and the team could not fathom that state. So I simply said, “Guys, what would good look like?” Well, the flip chart pen started flying and pages were filled in rapid succession. I was amazed. I saw people’s faces immediately change and ideas flowed effortlessly. Everyone could imagine the possibilities of “good” because it was achievable and realistic.
The magic question was born: “What would good look like?”
I soon started using the magic question in my daily life. When employees came into my office with their problem de jour, I would patiently listen and then ask them, “What does good look like to you?” They would always stop dead in their tracks, look thoughtfully skyward, and with released frustration and newfound enthusiasm, would start talking about potential solutions. They would leave my office, thanking me for the help, and most importantly, take their problems with them. It was remarkable!
Mind-boggling. My team members were more engaged. They got more done. The business moved further ahead. My boss was happier because results were improving. And all I did was stop solving people’s problems by becoming more facilitative (fancy term for asking questions and not giving answers!).
I started using the magic question at home with my wife and kids. When my teenage daughter was venting her drama de jour, I would listen, wait for her to breathe, and then ask her, “What would good look like?” Same result. Instant change in body language and facial expression. Her thought process switched right away to solving the situation, and usually, with realistic resolutions.
I use it all the time now. In board meetings, with frontline employee groups, angry customers, when leading strategy sessions, when teaching, and in any situation where there is a conflict or problem that needs solving. In any situation where I want individuals or teams to envision something different or to tackle a mountain that has yet to be climbed.
Make the magic question part of your leadership arsenal. Prepare to be amazed!
Robert Murray is a Vancouver, BC based Business Strategy Consultant, #1 Best Selling Author, and International Keynote Speaker. For further advice, insight and inspiration on how to unlock your inner leader, follow Robert on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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Tags: It's Already Inside, Leadership, Robert Murray, Robert S. Murray, Unlocked
