| Former CEO of Cinnabon and current CEO of AG1, Kat Cole, started her career as a project coordinator at Hooters, charged with opening franchises around the world.
Her first manager was, as Kat describes him, “an incredible mentor.” During a particularly challenging project, he gave her some advice that Kat continues to carry to every promotion. Kat was navigating a slew of bad decisions when he switched from managing to mentoring and said to her, “A lot’s going wrong, and you’re getting a lot of criticism. “Look, whenever you’re criticized, assume first it’s correct. Just allow yourself the opportunity to assume that something in the judgment or negative feedback is accurate. “And one of two things will occur as a result. Either:
“But how you approach that criticism should be focused on the why instead of debating the what.” Ask. Answer. Act. This approach has become Kat’s superpower:
As Kat reflected in an interview recently, “Answers don’t scale. Questions do.” “Finding the right questions allows me to make better decisions and have more fruitful actions, regardless of the dynamics or the situation – boom times or bust times.” What questions can we use to activate an ask-answer-act superpower?
By asking questions, we signal our intent to improve, grow, and thrive. By asking questions, we invite others to support that commitment and mentor us. We grant people permission to provide us with feedback, perspectives, and ideas. By focusing on the why – improvement – we decrease the sting of the what – their responses, which could otherwise feel like judgment or criticism. It’s not about the “what.” It’s about the “why” – a strong purpose gives us the strength and confidence to welcome all replies. Contributions become the gateway to reflecting, learning, and improving. It’s not about the answers. It’s about the questions. © 2024. Ann Tardy and MentorLead. www.mentorlead.com. All Rights Reserved. |