Making Your Point with a Question

We've all heard it, time and again, that one should make every effort to avoid being negative. In meetings, or team interactions, giving feedback is important, as ideas are developed and advanced. Being a critical part of that development team and making significant contributions, can create plenty of fodder for inter-team conflict and paralysis that can derail a team, and your career. So, how does one tell a team member that their idea is stupid? Well, you don't. You make them say it, if only to themselves, but in a way that makes them withdraw their position. And you do it with questions. Innocent questions, structured in a way that asks the person to address some of the weaknesses you see. They will either answer your questions to your satisfaction, or they will see your point in turn. In any case, you avoid being negative and saying, "That's a stupid idea, and it will never work", as well as saving a business relationship that might be a recommendation for a future job, after you're laid off because the economy tanked...........Hello.