Four Questions to Make Any Planning Conversation Strong
We spend hours workshopping, strategising, template filling, looking for the answer that will get our plans clearer and increase our chance of success. How can we do this more intentionally leveraging ours and our team’s natural smarts?
Real innovation comes in the conversation, connection and collaboration. Different perspectives and their combination is where the power is found. How do we leverage and trust the wisdom of the group? There are two things to consider when formulating a strong plan
Have the right people in the room
Ask the right questions
1. Have the right people in the room
Gallup in their research identified four styles of leadership (domains). These are identified through our CliftonStrength themes, our natural ways of thinking, feeling and behaving. Don’t know your strengths? Follow the instructions here.
Then by creating a flow, the needs and the genius of each leadership domain, in which your strength themes are found, get to thrive and drive the team towards excellence. The success of this process is most likely to be experienced when everyone holds their part lightly and keeps the goals of their team and the organisation as their primary focus. Understanding that by including everyone's unique contribution, the team have a more balanced and thorough approach.
Give those high in strategic thinking time to look beyond the status quo and without limits dream about what could be. They will establish the “What” of what needs to happen and the evidence of the “Why”.
Then move to the influencers. These people take the “Why” and take everyone on onboard by embracing the “What”. They bring momentum and cause others to want to join in.
The relationship builders keep everyone together establishing the “Who”. Not only identifying who can do each part, but they can help iron out any potential barriers by considering the positive or negative impact for those involved.
The executors delight in the “How”. They will see practical implications and will consider how to do it properly and “When”. They will be concerned about viability and ensure processes are established to see the project through to completion.
2. Ask the right questions
As Eugene Ionesco says, it is the question that enlightens, not the answer. The challenge is as a 5 year old we asked on average 65 questions a day. This drops to 44 by the time we are 8, and 6 by the time we are 44. For more on asking good questions, watch this You Tube video.
There are four simple questions which can encourage the flow mentioned above (and the related CliftonStrengths domain).
What is the result we want to see, feel and hear? Strategic Thinking
Why do we want to achieve this result? Influencing
Who could help us achieve this result? Relationship Building
How are we going to achieve this result? Executing
When it comes to planning there are two questions we always ask; what and how and two questions we often miss; why and who. By trying these four simple questions, we can make sure all these smarts have a role to play and a clear plan is formed.