35 Impactful Questions Managers Should Ask Themselves Regularly

Questions For Gauging Team Morale

1. Who haven’t I heard from?
2. How well do I know my team members? How well do they know each other?
3. Have I made a difference to each member of my team this week? (related: Have I checked in with each employee this week to see how they’re doing?)
4. Have I expressed gratitude to every single person on my team recently?
5. Is anyone a flight risk? (related: Is anyone starting to show the symptoms of burnout? Does workload need to be rebalanced? What should we stop doing? Does anyone need more of a challenge?)
6. Is there anything we should be celebrating?

Questions For Tracking Team Performance

1. Is each member on the team overperforming, on track or underperforming? (related: How can I make sure the person has the fullest opportunity to succeed? What capabilities do they need to take advantage of that opportunity? What would it look like if every person on my team were thriving in their role?)
2. What resource recommendation can I send someone this month?
3. Does my team know what success looks like for their role?
4. Does my vision for the team member’s trajectory line up with their vision for their own career trajectory? (related: Is my team member getting closer to their long-term aspirations by working on this project and team?)
5. In the last six months, has each member of the team grown in noticeable ways?
6. If I could just wave a magic wand and have a new candidate replace this position, would I want to do it?
7. Does my team know what their superpowers are?
8. What are the challenges ahead of our team?

Questions For Measuring Your Effectiveness As A Manager

1. Does the team know what the strategy is (not just our tactics)? (related: Am I giving the team enough oxygen to think big, not just execute?)
2. Is anyone on the team just cranking out work without context? (related: What am I not saying that needs to be said?)
3. What more can I say no to? (related: What are the true priorities versus the nice-to-haves? Are there any tasks we’re working on that aren’t worth the cost?)
4. Could my team function without me? (related: Who is ready to replace me?)
5. What’s one thing on my plate that I can delegate to my team? (related: Have I asked for help lately?)
6. When was the last time I asked for feedback? (related: Do I know what my perceived gaps are?)
7. How many times did I ask questions versus give answers this week?

Questions For Better Decision-Making

1. How sure am I?
2. Am I operating from a place of security or panic? (related: Is there an opposite way to react to this?)
3. What would be a completely different approach to this answer, project or problem? (related: Is there a faster or more agile way to get the results we desire? Is there a creative alternative?)
4. Am I hearing the group’s problems? (related: Am I communicating my plans and intentions with clarity?)

Questions For Managing Up & Sideways

1. Do I know what’s important to my boss right now?
2. What is my team being paid to do?
3. If the business were a person, would they significantly benefit from my organization’s priorities and efforts?
4. What have I been hesitating to share, create or take action on?
5. What does the person on the other end need to know?
6. How can I drive conversation across teams?

Questions For Focusing On Your Personal Well-Being

1. What energized me today?
2. Am I being kind to myself?
3. What can I learn from this? (related: How have I been complicit in creating the conditions I say I don’t want? What am I not saying that needs to be said? What am I saying that’s not being heard? What’s being said that I’m not hearing?)
4. Was I busy or productive today?
5. What do I want to practice?

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