People move so fast to find and produce answers to unknown questions. Our world moves fast, people move fast, answers come quickly… nobody stops to think of the question.

We tell ourselves we’ll stop and reflect later, but now it’s time to produce. That “later” never comes. When it does come, it usually comes with a healthy dose of “blame” and “why didn’t we think about this, that, and the other thing.”

I wrote the below a few years ago. I believe it’s worth pausing and giving it a read:

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You cannot be the answer if you cannot see the question.

My last boss once asked me: "David, what are you trying to solve?"
I had no idea.

I was trying my best to advocate on behalf of a learning strategy that I, and my team, felt we needed. But, we didn't know the question to which we were trying to answer, we didn’t why we needed a new strategy.
Consequently, I did not get what I attempted to achieve.  
I failed to know the question. I only saw an answer.

You cannot be the answer if you cannot see the question.

See the question by:

• Empathy: Learn to see the world from the other's view.

• Consider: Understand the impacts of the other's needs not being met.

• Realize: Deeply feel the importance of the other's need.

• Assert: Verbalize and write out the problem that needs to be solved.

• Look: Look at what you wrote out. Internalize the message.

• Share: Let the other(s) know that you're aware of the problem, share what you understand, and

• Ask: Ask for validation. If you're off, seek to understand what you missed and then re-share.

If you go through these steps, you will see the others.  
If you go through these steps, you will better understand the others.
If you go through these steps, you will know the question.
If you know the question, you have permission to be the answer.

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