Why Saying 'I Don't Know' Makes You a Better Leader Great leaders do not have all the answers. "I don't know" may come across as three simple, innocuous words, but they do have the power to make business stronger.
By Joanna Knight Edited by Micah Zimmerman
Key Takeaways
- Great leaders do not have all the answers, nor should they pretend to. You can only do what you can do, after all.
- Great leaders ask great questions of themselves and of their people in order to set their organization up for success.
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No one knows everything. There's no need to pretend that we do. A great leader is honest about their limitations and strengths. Accept that you will fail. Being honest and open about failure is not a weakness.
A great leader is not defined by having all the answers but by a willingness to grow and learn, a curiosity that leads to finding the required answers. It is about stopping, refueling, and being the best version of yourself.
Think about it. Do you want a team that comes to you for the answers? That has no mind of its own? No creativity? We all know the answer to that. Command and control is a thing of the past and won't cut the muster in today's ever-evolving business landscape, not if you want to be a business of tomorrow.
Leadership is about inspiring other members of your organization to be the best that they can be (because happy people equal happy clients equal happy business) and guiding them toward a common goal and purpose. It is about perspective and asking questions. Just as it is about accepting that you will fail, it is about accepting that they will also fail, so your role is to teach them how to fail forward.
What does this mean? It is about not only accepting that failure is the key to future success but also taking responsibility and learning from mistakes to persevere, challenge old ways of thinking, and move forward.
You don't have to have all the answers. But you do need to be able to ask your team the right questions to allow them the space to come up with answers you need, and often didn't know that you did.
As a leader, you have a unique perspective and overview of the organization's purpose and mission. And you need to trust your team, the people that you have hired as the best for the role, to play their part and apply their expertise. Your role is to first hire the right people. Second, to create an event that sets them up to succeed. Then, provide direction, vision, motivation, and inspiration, and guide them to success by asking the right questions.
Without questions, we don't change. And we don't solve problems. Asking questions is not about getting answers. It is about setting up a culture of learning, curiosity, challenging the norm, and constant evolution (some would say agility).
Related: There Are 6 Types of Great Leaders — Which One Do You Fall Into?
What's more, asking questions builds connections. In asking for help finding the answers, you are showing that you trust them, and they, in return, will be more likely to trust you. It invites collaboration and connection, reaching out to a broad audience of perspective and experience and resulting in better business decisions.
As a leader, you ask questions all day. How are you today? How is the latest product doing? What is the latest customer feedback? You do it without thinking. It is part of every day, facilitating the smooth workflow of business. Asking questions and hearing the response helps you gauge how your people feel and equips you with the knowledge to act upon. This, in turn, leads to increased motivation and engagement.
Take it one step further and consider the potential of asking the right questions that bring people together to explore new opportunities. What are the emerging trends or unmet customer needs for which we can provide the solution? How can we personalize our service to meet the needs of our customers better? How can we harness the latest technology to deliver increased value? And don't forget the open-ended ones, too. Tell me more… or why do you think that is?
These questions guide your organization; they showcase ambition and forward thinking. They invite collaboration and connection. And they will enhance any culture towards one of continuous learning. What's more, asking the right questions leads to getting the correct answers.
What is equally powerful, however, and essential in nurturing the skill of asking good questions is actively listening to the answers you get. In harnessing the power of asking questions, you need to be fully present in the conversation. It would be best if you heard the answers being shared and truly took the time to understand what was being said. Otherwise, there is no point in asking them in the first place.
Great leaders do not have all the answers, nor should they pretend to. You can only do what you can do, after all. Great leaders ask great questions of themselves and of their people in order to set their organization up for success now and in the future.
