The Art of Inquiry

Social constructionists would tell you that our words create our world. If our world is simply a function of our stories about it, then how we think and speak about our experiences holds the key to our ability to empower ourselves and influence others. Many leaders mistakenly assume that knowing the answers is their source of power. Quite the opposite. Knowing the right questions to ask – then asking them – is the most powerful action a leader can take. Framing up powerful questions, or what we’ll call the art of inquiry, that engage those around us in new ways of thinking often provides far more leverage for a leader than inserting their view as truth.

Leaders are storytellers, crafting the vision of what can be, who we are and where we’ve been. They create the frame for the house we’re trying to build. The best leaders communicate brilliantly, yet often through asking more than telling. They dig deep to understand how organizations, markets, and systems work. They invite important stakeholders to share their stories on the “what” and the “why” that contribute to where we are. Through simple, yet poignant inquiry, leaders move us toward what’s possible. They also help us understand ourselves in profound ways, together and as individuals.

I believe that the access out of “what is” into “what might be” is inquiry, which opens into truthful dialogue. Dialogue, described in fable by Native Americans as, “You talk and talk and talk until the talk starts,” is a conversation of appreciation, deep listening, and candid sharing. Dialogue enables us to speak to that which matters, and get at the meaning behind our lives and our actions. Leadership performance is not complete without staking it to an underlying sense of meaning. And inquiry takes us there.

So how does a leader begin to master inquiry? Great question. Look – you’re already doing it! Inquiry begins with calling into question our assumptions and beliefs about why things are the way they are. This includes our own sense of self. Continually calling into question my motives, my needs, my stories gives me access to a broader truth that my view is just one of many valid perspectives. Starting with myself also causes me to acknowledge how I have contributed, and still contribute, to the world outside of me. This acknowledgement is extremely powerful and will change your world – promise.

Once I develop a practice of inquiry into self, I can engage others with integrity about their stories. What do they see, feel, and believe about our collective experience? What is remarkable about the way things are, and what would make it even better? I want to engage in that inquiry with you.

Finding & Renewing Your Source

What is source?  You may have heard experts and advice-givers shout about the need to renew and replenish it. You might have read in a self-help or spiritual growth book somewhere about how to get back to it. You may know it as that longing that subtly tugs at you throughout your work day, begging for some quiet moments – even just a few – by the wild ocean or amongst the towering redwoods. But what is it anyway?

Source, defined by Merriam Webster, is a “generative force or cause; a point of origin or beginning.” In the world of leader development, source is that place inside that gives you life, makes your heart sing, and soothes your soul. It’s the fountainhead of your best thinking, most authentic giving and creating. For those who believe in a higher power, source may go by the name Spirit, God, or the Universe. Regardless of your religious or spiritual affinity, source can be agreed to live both internally and externally – something you access deep within as well as connect to in environments outside yourself.

Why does source matter to leaders? Knowing your emotional and spiritual “home” well – what it looks and feels like when you’re there – as well as knowing how to find it quickly, especially in moments of stress, challenge, or fatigue, is critical to a sustainable practice of leading others. In fact, many scholars argue that this is step one on any leadership journey – knowing how to lead yourself. Knowing and accessing your source relates to two significant elements of emotional intelligence (Goleman 1998): self-awareness and self-management. These two capacities set average leaders apart from the brilliant.

To find your source, let’s start by asking some questions. First, when have you felt most alive, invigorated, happy, and free? What were you doing, and who was there? Take a moment to reflect and recall that experience in your belly, your tip toes, your chest. Next, what is one thing you could do right now that would replicate that feeling of peace and joy? Is it taking a step outside to breathe the crisp air, calling your best friend for a pick-me-up, or reading poetry at your desk? Even small actions like these restore something inside of us that may feel missing. Connecting with our source renews us, brings us home.

Imagine how you would show up for your people if you felt that peaceful and taken care of most of the time? How might you behave differently when your best client called you with an embarrassing complaint or your boss asked for a huge project to be delivered a week early? Boyatzis and McKee (2005) describe renewal as a holistic process involving the mind, body, heart, and spirit. Continually recharging our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual tanks is the difference to showing up as the leader we want to be.

Sources:

Boyatzis, R. E., & McKee, A. (2005). Resonant leadership, renewing yourself and connecting with others through mindfulness, hope, and compassion. Harvard Business Press.
Goleman, D. (1998). Working with emotional intelligence. (1 ed.). New York, NY: Bantam.