Problem-solving via “Inquiry versus Advocacy”

by | Jul 6, 2017 | Firewood Life | 338 comments

Problem-solving via “Inquiry versus Advocacy”

I like problems.  

Not health or money or personal problems, but interesting business problems. Interesting business problems are what get me out of bed in the morning. Well, at least five days a week. I enjoy both the challenge and the journey.  

What I don’t enjoy is butting heads with others about how to solve the problem. Fortunately, I no longer do this. And, this is not because I am “the boss” (I’m not) or the “smartest person in the room” (my mom would tell you I definitely am). It is because I regularly use an approach called, “Inquiry vs Advocacy.”

Inquiry vs Advocacy is a communication approach that enables, well, communication. Open communication. Communication void of the tensions typically tied to a verbal my-idea-is-better-than-yours tug-of-war. It turns problem-solving into a true partnership effort. Partnerships are near and dear to our hearts here at Firewood. Partnering is in our DNA. We partner with our clients and with each other to make big things happen.

So what exactly is Inquiry vs Advocacy? Here are a couple of examples:

Example #1

Advocacy:  “We have a revenue gap this quarter. I know the best thing to do is offer a deep discount promotion on our top-selling Gizmo 2000 to close the gap.”

Inquiry:  “You say you do not feel a deep discount promotion to help close this quarter’s revenue gap is the best way to go.  I’m interested in hearing more about your idea.”  (Discussion takes place.) “How about we jointly chart out the pro’s and con’s of each idea and then make a recommendation?” (Note: Tonality matters. You will get a dramatically different discussion if you inquire with non-judgemental vs judgemental tone and posture).

The basic idea is you DO NOT just advocate for your point of view, though you do share it and discuss it. Instead, you consciously adopt an open mindset and ask questions to better understand ideas and points-of-view different than your own. In doing so, you create an environment that enables an open exchange of ideas. You get to better understand the rationale and genesis of other points-of-view, others become more open to learning about and considering your ideas, and, ideally, you land on better solutions.

Here are some additional examples of the difference between inquiry and advocacy:

Example #2

Advocacy:  (Ignoring uncomfortable body language in the room).  “OK – So let’s assign action items.”

Inquiry:  “I’m sensing not everyone is comfortable with the plan. I’d like to better understand the hesitations so let’s do a round robin and discuss concerns.”

 

Example #3

Advocacy:  “This is how it is going to be”, or, “I always…”, or, “I would never…”

Inquiry:  “What is your reaction to …?”

 

I was working for a previous employer when I was required to attend an “Inquiry vs Advocacy” workshop, and, I admit, I did a little mental eye-roll, thinking it was a new age-y, flavor-of-the-month Human Resources kumbaya effort. But, once I learned more, and tried it, I became a happy evangelist.

Teaching this technique is beyond the scope of this blog, and I would not do it justice, but I encourage you to Google it, try it and regularly use it.  

And, to practice what I preach, I’d love to hear your comments on this technique. What’s worked for you? What hasn’t? Any tips to share?

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