I recently had a conversation with a colleague of mine in the emotional intelligence arena and she made a statement I thought was very profound. She said, “no amount of wrong questions will lead you to the right answer” (Thanks Cindy). While I certainly agree with her statement, it made me chuckle because in business the opposite can be true.
Asking the wrong questions in business usually leads to less than desirable outcomes and sometimes painful financial loss, but using the “growth mindset”, they can also be the foundation for asking the right questions.
“In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.” (Dweck, 2015)
Simply stated, the growth mindset looks at every decision we make and experience we have as an opportunity to improve ourselves as human beings and in this context, businesspeople. Following this line of thinking, being wrong on a strategy or other business decisions should lead to a certain level of curiosity. This curiosity will cause you to ask questions about what went wrong. You will also ask yourself what you could have or should have done differently. This openness will usually inspire you to research those who have accomplished what you aspire to, which invariably leads to your growth.
The bottom line is we should always be growing as individuals and that growth spills over into everything we do personally and professionally. The more we seek to expand our knowledge base and ask questions, the greater the opportunities for long-term sustainable success.
I’ll leave you with a quote from one of my favorite authors, “If failure is not an option, then neither is success.” (Seth Godin).