A short e-learning on one of the coaching techniques from my Scrum Master Toolbox. A guide towards asking better questions that lead to more insight and action.

1. POWERFUL QUESTIONS
An e-learning out of the Scrum Master Toolbox
by Bjorn van den Einden

2. INTRODUCTION
• As a Scrum Master you are a coach
• Coaching means the goals and steps towards that goal come from
the coachee (not the coach)
• Coaching requires active and curious listening
• The art of asking well-formed questions is key
ASK BETTER
QUESIONS

3. WHAT IS A QUESTION?
“A sentence worded or expressed
so as to elicit information”

4. TYPES OF QUESTIONS
CLOSED QUESTIONS CHOICE QUESTIONS RETORICAL QUESTIONS
TAG QUESTIONS LEADING QUESTIONS OPEN QUESTIONS

5. CLOSED QUESTIONS
• Often invite a short focused answer
• What’s your name?
• Can often be anwered by “yes” or “no”
• Did you …. ?
• Have you …. ?
• Answers are often ‘right’ or ‘wrong’
• How old is he?

6. CHOICE QUESTIONS
• Often project the questioners point of view
• Can be generic or specific
• Give the respondent two or more options?
• Do you prefer “X” or “Y”

7. RETORICAL QUESTIONS
• Often humorous
• Don’t require an answer
• Can help to keep listeners engaged
• “Wouldn’t you like to stay healthy?”

8. TAG QUESTIONS
• Request a positive answer
to a positive statement
• Request a negative answer
to a negative statement
• “that was good, wasn’t it?”

9. LEADING QUESTIONS
• Point answers subtly to a certain direction
• Is loaded with questioners opinion
• Makes an (implicit) assumption
• “do you have any problems with your boss”

10. OPEN QUESTIONS
• Allow for longer responses and discussion
• Allow for creativity
• Enquire for the respondents thoughts
• Make room for information
• How..
• Why..
• What..
• Where..

11. WHAT IS A POWERFUL QUESTION?
Powerful questions are provocative queries that put a
halt to evasion and confusion. They invite the client to
clarity, action, and discovery at a whole new level.
“A paradigm shift occurs when a question is asked inside the current paradigm
that can only be answered from outside it.”
MARILEE GOLDBERG, THE ART OF THE QUESTION

12. POWERFUL QUESTIONS
• GENERATES CURIOSITY IN THE LISTENER
• STIMULATES REFLECTIVE CONVERSATION
• IS THOUGHT-PROVOKING
• SURFACES UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS
• INVITES CREATIVITY AND NEW POSSIBILITIES
• GENERATES ENERGY AND FORWARD MOVEMENT
• CHANNELS ATTENTION AND FOCUSES INQUIRY
• STAYS WITH PARTICIPANTS
• TOUCHES A DEEP MEANING
• EVOKES MORE QUESTIONS
• OFTEN A SHORT QUESTION

13. THE CONSTRUCTION OF A QUESTION
WHICH YES/NO
WHO WHEN WHERE
WHY *
HOW
WHAT

14. THE SCOPE OF A QUESTION
UP-CHUNKING
More global
To what end
Purpose
What is this part off
DOWN-CHUNKING
More details
Specifics
How exactly
Steps
How can you
improve your role
in relation to your
colleague
How can you
improve your role
in the team
How can you
improve your
role in the
department
How can you
improve your
role in the
company

15. THE ASSUMPTIONS WITHIN QUESTIONS
Does the question
contain any implicit
or explicit
assumptions?
DO I MAKE
PRESSUPOSITIONS
DO MY BIASES
SHOW DO I
GENERALIZE ?
(ALL/NEVER)
DO I CLAIM
ANYTHING TO
BE TRUE?
DO I PROJECT
MY OWN
THINKING?

16. WHY BE CAREFUL WITH WHY
• Sometimes lead to overly simplified answers
• Other times leads to overly rationalized answers
• Put pressure on the respondent
• Can lead to defensiveness
• Can lead to a socially-acceptable answer

17. HOW COME HOW
• Tend to be of a curious nature
• Elicits thinking patterns
• Elicits beliefs and values
• Elicits the respondents internal map

18. EXAMPLES
• How do you know?
• How does succes look?
• How would that work?
• How have you tried to solve it so far?
• How does that make you feel?
• What is your intention here?
• What assumptions could be in there?
• If our success was completely guaranteed,
what bold steps might we choose?
https://bit.ly/39BnRxK

19. EXAMPLE SITUATION (1/2)
With a manager explaining everything that was going wrong in the
teams, his employees not taking ownership and being unresponsive
to the issues at hand.
“What do you think is the cause?”
Led to him thinking about systemic factors and his own influence.
He came to the conclusion that his behavior hinders the teams to
take ownership.

20. EXAMPLE SITUATION (2/2)
A coachee dealing with uncertainty about a new team with several
knowlegable and dominant people. Struggling to find ways to deal
with her uncertainty and/or not to show it..
“How would you rather feel?”
She was so focused on the feeling and its effect, that she hadn’t
stopped to think what alternatives she had. She decided that
curiosity might be a better feeling. A feeling she knew well how to
trigger.

21. AKS BETTER QUESTIONS
• Is this a genuine curious question?
• What reaction is this questions likely to trigger?
• Is this question relevant enough to him/her now?
• Is this question different enough to lead to new thinking?
• Does this question leave/create room for more exploration?
• Is this question focused on the future?

22. START EXPERIMENTING!
EXPERIMENT WITH POWERFUL QUESTIONS!
DON’T OVERDO IT.
KEEP IT SIMPLE.
AND REMEMBER:
THE RESPONSE YOU GET
DETERMINES THE TRUE POWER OF THE QUESTION!

23. “
”
I hear and I forget
I see and I remember
I do and I understand
- Confucius -
- ANY (POWERFUL OR NOT) QUESTIONS -
Bjorn van den Einden