As leaders, the choice is ours. We can tell our people what and how to do their jobs and for the most part they will do it. They listen, they act and then they wait.  They wait for you to tell them what to do next. Certainly, there are times the 'tell' model can be useful, for example, when communicating simple tasks, training on something new or different, or critical tasks where failure can lead to disaster. However, when you continually tell, you create an environment of compliance.  Most likely your people will smile and seemly be glad to do the work.  But when they go home or talk to one another they say things like “I can’t believe they expect me to do that!” or “I am so tired of being micromanaged!”.

However, if you ask someone what and how they can accomplish success, they engage in thinking and assessing, they initiate action and follow-up.  Define success of what you want or need and then ask, “What options do you see?”, “What is your recommended path to success?” and just see what you receive in return (in addition to more committed and engaged people)!

Your challenge this week – Ask - don’t tell, and see the difference!