#69: Zoe Chance: Why we should ask more questions at work

Written by Oslo Business Forum | Oct 4, 2022 9:30:28 AM

– Most people don't realize how much more they could be asking.

That people should be asking more questions is one of many interesting key takeaways from this episode with Dr. Zoe Chance.

Zoe is a behavioral scientist with a doctorate from Harvard University. She teaches the most popular class at Yale University and is the author of the bestselling book Influence is your superpower.

So why should we ask more? What type of people asks more questions than others? And why do people resist being influenced?

People like your more than you think

All these questions are discussed in this interesting conversation between Zoe and host Tor Haugnes in the latest episode of «OBF-podden».

– I guess that the simplest thing to start with, and this is going to sound stupid, but just to start practising asking more people more often for more, Zoe argues.

Research suggests that people are two to three times more likely to say yes than you actually expect them to be.

– And people like you 12 percent more than you realize.

Furthermore, research has revealed that people with a working class background are less likely to ask questions, and men are three times more likely than women to ask about more money.

– People with more privilege are more likely to ask, than people with less privilege.

The inner two-year-old

Another topic in the episode is why people have a natural instinct to resist being influenced.

– We perceive things to be threats even when they are not. When you are trying to influence someone you actually are a threat to their time or their attention, Zoe says.

– It is like we have this inner two-year-old, so that when someone tries to influence us, that inner two-year-old is like «You are not the boss of me, you don´t tell me what to do!».

So how can you navigate and make people feel both more comfortable and open minded before you try to influence them?

In this episode you get to know more about just that, and also hear discussions regarding questions like:

Can technology in some ways make it easier to ask questions?
What was Zoe's most valuable learning from the pandemic?
What generational differences has Zoe's research revealed?

Listen to the podcast on Spotify, Itunes or wherever you listen to podcasts, or use the player above. Remember to subscribe for future episodes!

A big thanks to our host Tor Haugnes!

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