Standing Orders
General Strategic · Internal
13 / 21
65%
Read Index

Hear the real ask.

The literal ask is rarely the real one.

Clients ask for what they think they can get from us, not what they actually need. ‘Can you turn this by Friday’ is rarely about Friday.

Yes to the literal ask is the easy answer.
Yes to the real ask builds the relationship.

This doesn’t just apply to doing it for clients, but also for each other too.

  1. 01Repeat back what you heard before answering. ‘Sounds like the issue is X.’
  2. 02Ask one layer down before yes/no: ‘what does this need to do for you?’
  3. 03The third question is usually where the real ask lives.
  4. 04If the literal ask is easy and you're surprised it came to us, the real ask is something else.