Why Effective Leaders Should Always Ask The Second Question

There’s an old quote, “The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.”

I feel that way about asking questions.

The first one gets the information…there’s cheese there.

The second question gets you the outcome you want…the cheese.

It’s difficult as leaders or managers to slow ourselves down in this busy world and ask multiple questions, but I think it has such tremendous value. For example, you might be talking with a team member and say, “How are you feeling about the workload right now?” Their answer? “Frustrating.”

You’ve asked the first question. Now you’ve got information. You could say, “I’m sorry to hear that. Keep your chin up!”

That’s not helpful.

Instead, if you ask the second question, “What frustrates you about the workload?” Then you can find opportunities for how you can help them. Or even better, make the second question, “How can I help you reduce the frustration that you’re feeling?”

Second questions are truly important to help you better understand how to serve, guide, manage or encourage the people that you’re leading or managing.

You can also practice this skill with people outside of work. When you ask someone, “How was your day?” and they say, “Great,” you’ve got information. Ask the second question. “What does a great day look like in your world?” Or, “What does a great day look like for you?” Second questions help you better understand what they value, what’s important to them. Knowing what’s important to them helps you work with them more effectively.

In summary, when you’ve asked the first question, resist the urge to just respond and move on. Think of a second question you could ask that would give you more information to better help that person in front of you.