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0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Want better answers? Ask better question. Oct 18, 2009
I learned a long time ago, the value of a book is not determined by it's size (QBQ is only 115 pages), nor by how long it takes to read (QBQ can be read in about an hour), and not even by the number pages where you make notes in the margins (my copy of QBQ is only marked on a few pages) but the real value of a book should be determined by what you learn from it. When I finish a book, I ask myself, Will I grow from what I've learned? Was the time I invested here well spent? How will I alter what I do because of this book? My personal creed is to be a better person today than I was yesterday, so the most important question is, will I become a better person because of this book?
QBQ: THE QUESTION BEHIND THE QUESTION, by John G. Miller passed all of my criteria for being a "must read" type book. The primary message here is two-fold; personal accountability and ask better questions to get better answers. Sounds simple right? Let me give you a real life example to expand the principle.
I recently had a store manager and her entire staff out with the flu and pulled personnel from other stores to fill in. It turned into one giant fiasco when the stores printer went down, their operating software went down. And even the fax quit working. It was a perfect storm and the mistakes that took place were colossal.
My initial questions included "Who is responsible", "Why did you do this", and "When will I ever find capable people?" Had I read this book a few weeks earlier, my questions would have been much different. What can I do to prevent something like this from ever happening again? Or, How can I use this to improve our training program?
We live in a "finger-pointing" world. We put more focus on placing blame (or protecting ourselves from it) than on finding solutions. To find those solutions without placing blame, our questions should begin with "What" or "How" (not "Why", "When", or "Who"). To reinforce personal accountability, our questions should contain "I" (not "they", "them", "we", or "you"). Finally, our question must focus on action. "What can I do" is a perfect example.
Yes, the book is small. Yes, it only takes about an hour to read. Yes, you really do need to read it.
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Finding accountability! Oct 10, 2009
Not only did I get the book, but I recently listened to him speak at a function in Keystone. He was actually daring enough to say something most are afraid to say: accountability is an individual activity, not a team sport! Whether we're talking about the foreclosure crisis or personal happiness. I used the question he suggested about having employees give one suggestion on how to improve the company. He was right... most answers started with a "P": product, pricing, policies, people. Only one suggested that it starts with "Me"! Great ideas on how to bring personal accountability awareness into the office enviornment using a logical, nonthreatening approach. But the one that learned the most was ME!
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 The silent conversation in your mind Sep 27, 2009
QBA is about the conversation taking place in our subconscious mind. Are we asking ourselves "What & How" questions (i.e.: "How can I improve my performance?" or "What can I do to improve my performance?" or the other bad questions that lead us into a self-fulfilling cesspool of pity?
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Nothing builds confidence like Action! Sep 18, 2009
1. What ever happened to personal responsibility?
2. You can practice better accountability by asking better questions.
3. Make better choices in the moment by asking better questions.
4. The answers are in the question. If we ask a better question than we get a better answer.
5. Don't ask why. It is nonproductive to ask, "why is this happening to me".
6. How can I better understand you?
7. "When" questions lead to procrastination. Procrastination increases stress.
8. Blame question solve nothing. Ask, "What can I solve today." Infighting drains the life out of organizations. Fix the problem and never affix the blame.
9. Personal accountability begins with you. We control our thoughts and actions. Ask, what and how questions. Changes comes from inside from decisions made by the individual. Change is about making a difference in us. Modeling is the most important teacher.
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Great book for whole company. Sep 11, 2009
We purchased around 18 books for all our employees to read and discuss. The reason we purchased this book, is we like the short chapters and the topics that are discussed.
We want all our employees to know that they have a choice on what they do and not to use excuses for things that happen in their life.
Being accountable is the first step and this is an excellent book to help us with this goal. From this book: "What Can I Do?" Well I did do something I bought this book for each one of our employees.
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