by Nick Jacobs

Dale Dauten in an article written for CAP Today entitled, A Call for Imagination, talks about the differences between great bosses and ordinary ones. His first very salient point was that one boss spends the day answering questions while the other spends the day asking questions. Mr. Dauten quoted the late business guru, Peter Drucker, as having said, “My greatest strength as a consultant is to be ignorant and ask questions.”

What a phenomenal gift, ignorance. Think of it. The recognition that ignorance can be strength. By studying best practices, by asking plenty of questions, by not knowing the answers, and finally by leading thought patterns toward better, faster, cheaper; things can change in a positive manner. By asking the “what would it take” questions, we have an opportunity to short circuit the usual objections because it assumes the old methods aren’t enough.

Instead of asking, “Is that the best you can do,” the uplifting question, according to Dauten, becomes “How could it be even better?”

So, the call completely changes from a call for accumulated knowledge to a call for imagination, and the old methodologies begin to change dramatically.