Ritual Questions Help Inform Effective Leaders

Naturally curious people ask lots of questions and take time to reflect on the answers. Even if you aren’t naturally curious, you can build this type of reflection into both your agenda and the agendas of your employees by asking so-called ritual questions (example: “What have I learned today?”). Although ritual questions are not widely used in organizational settings, they can be a simple tool for improving your leadership skills and style. Ritual questions give your brain time to process the torrent of data you encounter every day. According to Colonel Eric Kail, the former course director of military leadership at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, this reflection “is an effort to understand how the events of our life shape the way in which we see the world, ourselves, and others.”