In my last article, I unpacked Quantitative Intuition™ (QI): the ability to make sound decisions with incomplete information. This isn’t guesswork. It’s a proficiency you can build using context, synthesis, and one overlooked skill: asking questions. Yes, something we learn around 36 months of age but somehow forget when we are 36 years old. We over-index on leading with the answer rather than exploring the unknown.
Precision Questioning isn’t new. It’s a modern descendant of the Socratic method, evolved into a high-stakes tool for Silicon Valley and beyond. Developed by Stanford educators Dennis Matthies and Monica Worline, Precision Questioning is paired with Precision Answering. It relies on a structured, one-question/one-answer format to pierce through complexity and reveal deeper truths.
At its core, Precision Questioning demands that you ask with intent — and keep asking — until you hit the edge of what is known. It’s designed to drive deep thinking, surface blind spots, and elicit insights that wouldn’t emerge otherwise.
Think of it as intellectual excavation. The kind that doesn’t stop until someone says, “I don’t know.”
Here’s how it works.
Step 1: Start with an open-ended question
The most valuable insights start with the least obvious tactic: don’t lead with an answer. Lead with a question.
Senior leaders often open a meeting with a declarative: “What’s our revenue gap versus last quarter?” “Do we need to pivot our strategy?” These are fine questions, but they’re already pointed toward a conclusion. They invite confirmation, not exploration.
The open-ended question does something more powerful. It enables you to surface what others are seeing before you lock them into your frame. Open-ended questions widen the aperture.
In your next meeting try one of these instead:
- Help me understand…?
- Have you considered…?
- Or my personal favorite… What surprised you?
It might initially feel too broad, especially in a room full of people conditioned to chase precision. But that’s the point. The open-ended question builds shared context. It surfaces what others believe is important before you narrowly define the problem. Once you ask one of these questions simply observe if it changes the energy in the room or the type of information that is shared.
This isn’t small talk. It’s strategic. Because when you skip this step, you risk solving the wrong problem with perfect efficiency.
Step 2: Respond, don’t react. Embrace silence.
Once you’ve opened the floor, the real work is to resist the instinct to fill it.
Silence is one of the most underrated tools in your questioning arsenal. It creates space for reflection. It gives people permission to reveal what they think, not just what they think you want to hear. It creates a psychologically safe space for exploration. It fosters a learning environment.
You’ll be surprised how often the best insights come three or four seconds after someone initially stops speaking. That beat? That hesitation? It’s often where the real truth lives.
So here’s the challenge: ask the open-ended question. Then wait. And when someone finally responds, listen to what’s said, and how it’s said. Respond with a question that builds on it. Not a pivot, not a challenge. A cue to go deeper.
This step is less about inquiry and more about presence. You are no longer searching for the right answer; you’re searching for the better question that moves the conversation forward.
Step 3: Ask a stream of questions
This is where Precision Questioning gets surgical.
Once you’ve opened the floor and created space, you begin to explore and deepen the thinking with a stream of well-placed follow-ups. Each one builds on the last, driving clarity.
Some of the most powerful streams I’ve used:
- What’s the assumption behind that?
- What else could be true?
- If we had to decide in the next hour, what would we do?
- What would make us change our minds?
A stream of questions does not turn into a waterfall. It’s more like jazz: responsive, dynamic, adaptive. You’re listening for the signal, then layering questions that draw out more information with precision.
Done well, this step helps identify blind spots, test convictions, and prioritize what matters. It gets you from “I think” to “I see.” From “maybe” to “move.”
Precision questioning in action
This isn’t theoretical. Here’s what changes when the approach is put into practice:
- Less performative reporting. More targeted thinking.
- Fewer slides. More synthesis.
- Less agreement for agreement’s sake. More healthy tension in the service of clarity.
Precision Questioning is a skill, but it’s also a culture. When teams adopt it, meetings become sharper. Debates become more productive. And decisions start to reflect not just data, but disciplined curiosity.
Why it matters now
In a world where decisions can’t wait, the cost of vagueness is skyrocketing. Your competitors aren’t just innovating faster, they’re aligning faster. And alignment comes from clarity. Clarity comes from questions.
So, before your next meeting, ask yourself:
- Are we really aligned on what we’re asking?
- Have we created space for the unexpected insight?
- Are we building momentum or just circling the analysis?
The three pillars of precision questioning aren’t soft skills. When used together, they lay the groundwork for what Quantitative Intuition™ is really about: piercing ambiguity with intentional inquiry.
But let’s be clear, no amount of questioning can save you if you’re solving the wrong problem, because vague questions lead to vague answers. And in high-stakes environments, that’s not just inefficient, it’s dangerous. Stay tuned for when I break down how to pressure-test your problem framing so you’re not just asking better questions but the right ones.
In the meantime, if your team is chasing answers but not making progress, pause the search and step back into the question. Let’s talk about how you’re asking.
I post to challenge thinking, share what actually works, and learn in public. After 25 years inside brand heavy weights like Microsoft and American Express, I’ve seen firsthand how teams lead: the good, the bad, and the quietly brilliant. Now, as CEO of PSB Insights, I’m focused on helping organizations cut through noise and make sharper, faster, more human decisions.
Because decision-making isn’t just a process; it’s a culture. And too often, we reward consensus over clarity.
If you’re rethinking how your team decides what matters, I’d love to hear how you’re approaching it. Let’s trade notes.
Christopher Frank, CEO, PSB Insights
