The teammate who annoys you with questions might be the only one who actually read the plan.

LEADERSHIP

WHAT THIS MEANS

Questions feel like friction when you are busy, and the person asking them is often the only one who has read the plan closely enough to find the gaps. Everybody else is nodding because they have not got that far. Irritation is a poor guide here, since it tends to point straight at the most engaged person in the room.

When somebody’s questions start wearing on you, answer the next one properly and see what it turns up. Thank them for the one that catches a real hole. Silence from everyone else is not agreement.

A QUESTION TO SIT WITH

Whose questions irritate you because they are paying close attention?

MORE IN LEADERSHIP & INFLUENCE

Free, with nothing to buy inside it.