Why the Best Leaders Keep Asking Why
Early in my career, I learned about the Five Whys, a simple yet powerful problem-solving method developed by Sakichi Toyoda at Toyota in the 1930s.
The idea is straightforward: when you face a problem, ask why it happened. Then ask why again about that answer, and continue until you reach the root cause, usually after about five rounds. It sounds simple, yet most people don’t do it consistently.
But experience taught me that asking why isn’t the only door to understanding. Depending on the situation, the right question might be:
- What changed?
- Who asked for it?
- When does it happen?
- What’s the goal behind it?
- Where does it occur?
The real value isn’t in the wording, it’s in the mindset of curiosity. The willingness to ask, even when it feels uncomfortable or obvious. Don’t be afraid to sound “stupid.” That’s how you get to the root cause, or the root ask. Only then can you design the right solution.
I’ve used this method countless times, as a QA manager, director of operations, and product manager. The result is always the same: faster, clearer, and more satisfying outcomes for everyone involved. It works regardless of your title, your team, or your industry, because curiosity is universal.
I’ve lost count of how many times a request that sounded like a major development project turned out to need only a small configuration tweak, simply because I asked more questions.
People may get impatient when you probe deeper. But think how much more frustrated they’d be if they ended up with something late, buggy, or not what they really needed.
Curiosity costs seconds. Misunderstanding costs weeks. Choose the first.