The primary technique in VIEW is simply to ask how and what questions. These are open-ended: “Do you like ice cream?” yields yes or no, but “How do you feel about ice cream?” might yield a childhood story, a dairy allergy, a memory of a cow. Open questions give access to vastly more data, which itself demonstrates genuine wonder.
Why questions are avoided for two reasons. First, they typically carry implicit judgment — “Why’d you do that?” usually means “you should feel bad and make an excuse.” Second, why questions are often unanswerable. “Why is the sun?” is impossible, while “What makes the sun?” or “How did the sun get there?” yields rich information.
You can be judgmental with any question type — “What makes you such a dick?” But asked from a VIEW state of mind (vulnerable, curious, empathetic, impartial), that same question lands completely differently. People laugh or open up. The state of mind transforms the question. How and what questions also force reframing that opens neurology — they aren’t how we’d normally phrase things, which creates a productive disruption.
The payoff: executives report that 10-minute VIEW conversations are more productive than hour-long meetings where they push reports toward answers. Often the only thing people need is to be fully heard — then they willingly go in the direction the manager wanted.
“Almost every complaint I’ve ever heard about a boss or an employee has had some form of ‘I don’t feel heard’ in it.”
Related Concepts
- Wonder is curiosity without needing an answer
- Asking questions is active listening
- Wonder eliminates defensiveness