Questions You Should Be Asking VS. Questions You Need to Be Asking

If you’re not riding the myriad of emotions offered by Spring of 2020, you are the exception, be grateful. For most of us, we are responding and reacting to daily changes at different paces and measures depending on industry, geography, family circumstances, preparedness at home and with your business, financial security, and overall health.  

What kinds of questions should you be asking right now to ensure you are thinking beyond the rapidly changing daily landscape to be as strategic as possible while charting unknown territory in your business?  Here are several I’ve compiled while leading global groups over the past several months. Please use and share if they are helpful:

1. What’s the best thing happening right now/good news?
2. Where’s your biggest pain? What do you need help with?
   1. What issues/gaps are you recognizing in your business?
   2. What systems/processes do you need to create or revise? 
3. Return to work – practices, process, planning – timing – phases?
   1. How are you managing staff if on site? 
   2. How are you managing on-site sick diagnosis? 
4. What changes do you anticipate in your market or industry? Society?
5. How is your business/family being impacted through the summer?
6. Have you done scenario planning?
   1. How clear are you with financial impact and projections? 
   2. What are your trigger points for key decisions – ST/LT? 
   3. Where are you with employees? Furloughs, layoffs…
7. In what ways are you transforming, changing and innovating? Blank canvas, what would you do if you were starting over right now?
8. Communication – what’s working/not?
   1. What is your strategy to communicate and manage the impact? 
9. Working remotely – what’s working/not? What will you keep/never do again?
10. How are you measuring productivity?
11. Updates on PPP? New rules, accounting for…
12. What opportunities do you see?
13. What is your new sales and marketing strategy?
14. Three years from now, looking back, what would we need to do so that in 3 years we can say this current crisis was one of the best things that happened to us?

As a leader, what kinds of questions should you be asking right now to ensure you are thinking beyond the rapidly changing daily landscape to be as strategic as possible, while charting unknown territory?  Here are several I’ve compiled while leading global groups over the past several months. Please use and share if they are helpful: 

1. How far into the future can you see? 
2. In what ways do you plan to invest in/redesign your personal life? 
3. What are you doing to take care of yourself to lead clearly, calmly, consistently, and effectively? 
4. How are you doing personally and professionally? 
5. What practices do you have that support you in being your best self? 
   1. Are you doing them enough?  
   2. What supports you the most/least? 
6. What are you doing to manage your energy and mood? 
7. Where are you finding joy? Inspiration? Hope? Strength? 
8. How are you supporting your self/team/family? 
9. What will you eliminate? 
10. What will you keep/continue? 
11. In what ways are you transforming, changing and innovating? Blank canvas, what would you do if you were starting over right now?  
12. Three years from now, looking back, what would we need to do so that in 3 years we can say this current crisis was one of the best things that happened to us?