DETAILS: ASK "WHAT CAN I DO?" - PART I WORK
A – Ask "What Can I Do?"
Effectively anticipating needs requires making a practice of asking the right questions for the work you're presented with. No matter where you turn there's work waiting to be done: at your job, around the house, and with your friends. There are assignments to complete, projects to work on, and relationships to strengthen. With all of the work that surrounds us, how often are we asking those around us what we can do to better support them and anticipate their needs? Asking "What can I do?" simply means, asking the right questions to get the most important information needed at that time to serve well. Over the next three blog posts, we will briefly look at asking "What Can I Do?" at work, at home, and with friendships.
ASKING AT WORK
Asking the right questions at work can go a long way. Asking questions is a powerful tool that can ensure you're doing things the right way the first time. However, it's important to know what questions to ask.
In order to do this, the first thing you need to consider is what important information you need to know. At work, there are a variety of things you will need to know to be successful with your responsibilities. Here are some examples:
What is your supervisor's vision for this project?
What are your supervisor's goals?
Who is your audience?
What kind of timeframe are you working with?
How will this affect others on your team? Who else should be involved?
How will this serve the mission of your company/organization?
Once you understand what information you will need to know, formulate questions that will provide the answers you need. This will require asking questions of those around you and asking some questions of yourself.
Asking Others
If your supervisor's vision is unclear for a project or initiative, ask them to paint a picture of what they are hoping to see happen and who they would like to be involved?
Most good leaders will clearly express goals for their team to achieve. However, if you find yourself wondering what you should be focusing on, check in with your direct report and communicate your desire to work on what is most important by asking for the top 3 things needing to be accomplished. This will allow you to think through the necessary details to accomplish those goals and objectives.
Always ask for specific deadlines for projects and objectives so you can create a workable timeline to ensure on time completion.
As you receive answers to these questions, repeat back what you understand is being asked of you. This will provide opportunity for more questions to be asked if needed, which prevents you from having to come back more often than necessary. As you ask questions like this to your direct report, not only will you learn what is best for you to focus on, but also how they are thinking as you prepare for future projects and initiatives.
Ask Yourself
While you are working on a project, take time to stop and consider who your audience is. If there isn't a specific audience, get out a piece of paper or open a blank Word doc and begin writing out common characteristics of those in your audience. This will allow you to serve your target audience in the best way possible.
If you are working with other people, think about how this project or task will affect the other people on the team. Ask yourself who will be involved? Who could you bring in that could offer additional support and help.
Most companies have mission or purpose statements. If you don't know yours ask about it. If there isn't one, you should suggest creating one. Once you know the mission statement, consider how this task supports the mission. Also, consider what features you could add to the task or project to make additional connections to the mission.
When completing a project or task, instead of asking, “Is this ok?” ask: “What would you like changed?”, “What do you like about this?, or "What don’t you like?”
These are just a few questions to get you started. As you begin asking questions, you will uncover the most important information needed to serve your supervisor and team well.
What kind of questions do you ask when assigned tasks at work?
| Credits: Author and Photography - Jacintha Payne |
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