One of your direct reports walks into your office looking for help: the rollout of the new line of Web-based products she is managing is falling behind schedule. All the prototypes have been created and beta tested, but she is having trouble getting final sign-off from the VP of IT. Deadlines have come and gone, and no amount of reminding or cajoling will get her to focus on her project.

你的一个下级到你的办公室寻求你的帮助:即将上线的网络产品因她管理不善而落后进度。所有技术原型都已经搞出来了并且经过了β测试，但是她在副总裁最后签字那里出了问题。最后期限将至。提醒和哄骗并不能让她的心思放在项目上。

As her manager, what should you do? If your first instinct is to suggest a solution, think again.

作为她的主管，你咋办？如果你的第一直觉是提供一个解决方案，再想想。

Although providing employees with answers to their problems often may be the most efficient way to get things done, the short-term gain is overshadowed by long-term costs. By taking the expedient route, you impede direct reports’ development, cheat yourself of access to some potentially fresh and powerful ideas, and place an undue burden on your own shoulders. When faced with an employee’s problem, you can respond in a much more value-adding way: by asking the right questions, help her find the best solution herself. We aren’t talking about asking just any questions but, rather, employing questions that inspire people to think in new ways, expand their range of vision, and enable them to contribute more to the organization，

尽管给员工的问题提供答案经常是最有效的解决方法，短暂收益导致长期成本的大大提高，为了更大的利益，你不能直接指导进展，骗你自己去关注一些潜在新奇和积聚能量的想法，在给自己肩上扛上一份相当沉的重担。再次面对员工的问题，你可以通过问问题来提供个非常有价值的回应，让她自己想出办法，我们不是在讲只问问题而是让员工根据问题去思考新的方法，开阔他们的视界，让他们能为组织做更多贡献。（平常呀问自己问题咯）

Questions packing this kind of punch are usually open-ended — they’re not looking for a specific answer. Often beginning with “Why,” “How,” or “What do you think about…,” they are questions that set the stage for subordinates to discover their own solutions, increasing their competence, their confidence, and their ownership of results.

问题的形式经常是开放式的-他们不是在找一个具体的答案。与“为啥”“咋整”“元芳你怎么看”为伍，为下属做好准备，搞定自己的解决方案，提升他们的竞争力。信心和他们对于结果的所有权。

Here is a framework for asking the right questions at the right time to create clarity and agreement around issues and to empower your direct reports.

这有一个问明智问题在合适时间去创造清晰公式的问题来为你的直接下属授权。

Ask the right kind of questions 

问对的问题

The word “empower” gets bandied about so much that one could be forgiven for overlooking what it actually means: to imbue someone with power, to instill in the individual a sense of his own strength and efficacy. “When the boss asks for a subordinate’s ideas, he sends the message that they are good — perhaps better than his. The individual gains confidence and becomes more competent,” says Michael J. Marquardt, a professor of human resources and international affairs at George Washington University (Washington, D.C.) and author of Leading with Questions: How Leaders Find the Right Solutions by Knowing What to Ask (John Wiley & Sons, 2005).

“授权”一词被大肆宣扬，以至于人们可以忽略它实际上的含义:给一个有权力的人灌输一种他自己的力量和效力的感觉。当老板要求下属的想法时，他会发出这样的信息:他们很好——也许比他的好。乔治华盛顿大学(华盛顿特区)的人力资源和国际事务教授Michael J. Marquardt说:“个人获得自信并变得更有能力。”他同时也是《带着问题:领导者如何找到正确的解决方法》一书的作者(约翰威利和儿子们，2005)。

But an empowering question does more than convey respect for the person to whom it’s posed. It actually encourages that person’s development as a thinker and problem solver, thereby delivering both short-term and long-term value: the short-term value of generating a solution to the issue at hand and the long-term value of giving subordinates the tools to handle similar issues in the future independently.

但是一个赋权的问题不仅仅是表达对他所提出的人的尊重。它实际上鼓励了人作为一个思考者和问题解决者的发展，从而带来了短期和长期的价值:短期价值创造了一个解决问题的方法和长期的价值，给下属的工具在未来独立处理类似的问题。

A disempowering question, on the other hand, undercuts the confidence of the person to whom it’s asked and sabotages her performance. Often, these types of questions focus on failure or betray that the questioner has an agenda.

另一方面，一个令人失望的问题，会削弱被问到的人的信心，破坏她的表现。通常，这些类型的问题都集中在失败或背叛问题上。

The most effective and empowering questions create value in one or more of the following ways:

最有效和授权的问题在以下几个方面创造价值:

They create clarity: “Can you explain more about this situation?”

很清楚地说：“你能解释一下这种情况吗？”

They construct better working relations: Instead of “Did you make your sales goal?” ask, “How have sales been going?”

构建了更好的工作关系:而不是“你实现了你的销售目标吗?”问:“销售情况如何?”

They help people think analytically and critically: “What are the consequences of going this route?”

帮助人们分析和批判地思考:“走这条路的后果是啥?”

They inspire people to reflect and see things in fresh, unpredictable ways: “Why did this work?”

激励人们以一种新的、不可预测的方式来反思和看待事物:“为啥要这么整?”

They encourage breakthrough thinking: “Can that be done in any other way?”

鼓励开窍式的思考方式：“这还有其他方法来解决吗？”

They challenge assumptions: “What do you think you will lose if you start sharing responsibility for the implementation process?”

挑战假说：“如果你为实施过程分担责任，你会失去什么”

They create ownership of solutions: “Based on your experience, what do you suggest we do here?”

创造了解决方案的所有权:“根据你的经验，你建议我们在这里做什么?”

Create a culture that embraces questions

创造一个拥抱问题的文化 

To foster a culture in which questions are widely used to create value, begin by letting direct reports know that you value their queries. “For example, tell them to bring their best questions into their performance appraisal,” Marquardt says. These might be questions they posed in the past year that led to new ideas and solutions for the company or questions they would like to ask you during the review to boost their own effectiveness and that of the unit or team.

为了培养一种被广泛应用于创造价值的文化，首先让他们知道你重视他们查询的直接报告。马夸特说:“例如，告诉他们把最好的问题提交给他们的绩效评估。”这些问题可能是他们在过去一年提出的问题，这些问题创造了公司的新想法和解决方案，或者他们想在审查过程中问你的问题，以提高他们的效率和团队或团队的效率。

Just as important, it is up to you as the leader to model the question-asking approach so that your team, in turn, will employ it with their own reports. For example, you can track how well the team is working together by asking questions like:

同样重要的是，作为领导者，你应该以提问的方式来模拟问题，这样你的团队就会用他们自己的报告来使用它。例如，你可以通过问这样的问题来跟踪团队的合作情况。

We’ve been working together for three hours today; what did we do best as a team?

今天我们一起工作了三个小时;作为一个团队，我们做得最好的是什么?

What enabled us to be successful in coming up with an innovative strategy?

是什么使我们能够成功地想出一个创新的策略?

How can we ask better questions?

我们怎样才能提出更好的问题呢?

How can we apply what we are learning to other parts of our work?

我们如何将我们所学到的应用到我们工作的其他部分?

What leadership skills helped us succeed today?

今天，什么样的领导才能帮助我们成功?

What you get by asking 

通过问问题你得到了什么

While going into your team or one-on-one meetings with a list of questions rather than points to be made takes some thoughtful planning, the payoff can be huge. Marquardt experienced this himself when he was executive director of the former Arlington, Va.-based World Center for Development and Training.

当你进入你的团队或者一对一的会议时，你需要罗列一些问题，而不是要做一些深思熟虑的计划，这样做的回报是巨大的。马夸特在他担任位于弗吉尼亚州阿灵顿的世界发展与培训中心的执行董事时亲身经历了这一过程。

He asked each of his direct reports, “What one idea and/or strategy that we are not currently implementing do you believe would best contribute to the success of our company?” The responses this question generated were amazing, he says. “We came up with a marketing strategy that I had never considered before and added a couple of new services for our customers,” including a short-term certificate program and courses that blended classroom and online learning. As a result of his query, the group also examined new markets in Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia and developed local partners in those regions. And because these were their ideas, Marquardt’s direct reports were committed to putting them into action. “They accepted responsibility in designing, marketing, and implementing the new programs,” he says.

问了他的每一个直接报告，“你认为我们目前正在实施的一个想法和/或策略，你认为对我们公司的成功有最好的贡献吗?”他说，这个问题产生的回答令人吃惊。“我们想出了一个我从未考虑过的营销策略，为我们的客户增加了一些新的服务，”包括一个短期的证书课程和课程，混合了课堂和在线学习。由于他的查询，该集团还审查了东欧和东南亚的新市场，并在这些市场中发展了当地合作伙伴。

By leading your team meetings with questions, you will also help eliminate ambiguity and create alignment around issues. “Most groups are not aligned when they come together,” Marquardt says. “When a leader goes into a group and states a problem, everyone assumes that they understand the problem in the same way. In reality, that is false.” If, for example, a product isn’t selling, you may assume that it’s because of a flawed marketing program. But what if others think it’s a flawed product? You won’t learn that without asking, “What do you think the issue is?” Without consensus on the problem, you can’t define a strategy to address it. Asking such questions enables team members to understand one another’s perspectives and agree on what they are dealing with.

通过带领你的团队讨论问题，你也将有助于消除歧义，并围绕问题建立一致性。马夸特说:“大多数群体在一起的时候并不一致。”当一个领导者进入一个团队，并提出一个问题时，每个人都假设他们以同样的方式理解这个问题。事实上，这是错误的。例如，如果一个产品不卖，你可能会认为这是因为一个有缺陷的营销计划。但如果其他人认为这是一个有缺陷的产品呢?如果没有问“你认为问题是什么?”“在这个问题上没有共识，

What not to ask 

什么不要问

Marquardt points out that, contrary to the business truism “There are no bad questions,” several types of questions can have a negative effect on subordinates.

马夸特指出，与商业上的真理相反“从来没有坏问题”，有几种问题会对下级产生消极的影响。

Questions focused on why a person did not or cannot succeed force subordinates to take a defensive or reactive stance and strip them of their power. Such questions shut down opportunities for success and do not allow people to clarify misunderstandings or achieve goals. These questions include:

问题纠结于为什么一个人没有或不能成功地迫使下属采取防御性或被动的立场，剥夺他们的权力。这样的问题会阻碍成功的机会，也不允许人们澄清误解或达成目标。这些问题包括:

Why are you behind schedule?

为什么你落后进度啦？

What’s the problem with this project?

这个项目有什么问题?

Who isn’t keeping up?

谁没跟上？

Don’t you know any better than that?

难道你不知道还有比这更好的吗?

Leading questions seek a specific answer, one that puts the person being asked the question in a negative light, pushes through the questioner’s agenda, or exerts social pressure to force agreement. Among their many downsides, leading questions such as the following inhibit direct reports from answering candidly and stifle honest discussion:

让问题去寻找特定的答案，这问题使整个人都不好了，推动日常的问题进度，或者施加社交压力迫使他们达成协议在他们众多的缺点中，有一些主要的问题，例如以下的一些问题，直接回答了坦率的回答，并扼杀了诚实的讨论:

You wanted to do it by yourself, didn’t you?

你想自己做这件事，是不是?

Don’t you agree that John is the problem here?

你不认为约翰是个问题吗?

Everyone else on the team thinks John is the problem. What about you?

团队里的其他人都认为约翰是个问题。你呢?

While closed questions, which require specific answers, can be a good way to open and close a conversation, a whole string of them in a row, such as the following, will make subordinates feel they are being interrogated:

然而封闭式的问题，获得的指定答案，将会很好地开启一个封闭式的对话，一连串的封闭问题，如下面的，会让下属觉得他们正在被审问:

Is this a good time to talk?

现在是交谈的好时机吗?

What time is the meeting?

几点开会？

How many people are coming?

几个人到了？

Who else will be there?

还有谁？

When will the report be ready?

报告什么时候开始？

Their success is your success

他们的成功就是你的成功

As you strive to lead by asking rather than telling, remember that leaders are only as successful as the people who report to them. By asking your direct reports the right questions, you can help them develop their ability to solve problems, their creativity, and their resourcefulness. Not only will their greater strength in these areas reflect well on you, but it also will enable them to better help you and the whole unit when fresh challenges arise.

当你努力去指导别人而不是告诉别人的时候，记住，领导者和那些向他们汇报的人一样成功。通过问你的直接报告正确的问题，你可以帮助他们发展他们解决问题的能力，他们的创造力和他们的足智多谋。他们在这些方面的力量不仅会在你身上体现得很好，而且还会使他们在新的挑战出现时更好地帮助你和整个单位。

“You don’t have to have the answer to ask a great question,” says Marquardt. “A great question will ultimately get an answer.”

马夸特说:“你不需要回答一个很好的问题。”“一个伟大的问题最终会得到答案。”