.
When dealing with a crisis:
“How can I prevent this crisis from happening again?”
After finishing something:
“What did I do right? What would I do differently next time?” (Brian Tracy)
At the start of the day:
“What are the three most important things for me to do today?”
“What things can I do today that could make a big difference?”
Many times throughout the day:
“Is this the best way to spend my time right now?”
“What is the best way to spend the next 10 minutes?”
“If I had to do this task in half the time, what short-cuts could I take?”
“Why am I doing this?”
Clarifying objectives and priorities:
“Why am I doing this? What am I trying to accomplish? Is there a better way?”
When reading something:
“Is this the best way I could be spending my time right now?”
“How can I use this information?”
When a subordinate raises a problem and asks you what to do:
“What do you think we should do?”
When someone phones or drops by and you want them to get to the point:
“What can I do for you?” (Getting straight to the point.)
“I’m working to a deadline right now. Can I call you later?”
When you’re not doing something because of fear:
“What’s the worst that can happen? Can I handle that?”
When you’re not doing something because it’s difficult or chucky:
“What’s the next tiny step that can get me closer to my goal?”
“How can I break this down into bite-sized pieces?”
“What else can I try?”“Who can help me?”
While working on a project:
“Is this working out? Is there a better way?”
When you’ve completed one bit of a project:
“What’s the next action?”
When you’re requesting someone to do something:
“Have I spelled out exactly what I want this person to do?”
At poorly run meetings that are not action-focused:
“Before we move on, what have we decided to do about this [agenda item]?”
Speak Your Mind