What do you think? This was a phrase I grew up hearing from my parents. It was partly one way to deal with my incessant questioning, but also a way of teaching me to think for myself, to learn, to have an opinion. I catch myself doing in now with my children, encouraging them to have an opinion and propose their hypothesis.

What do you think? It is a small phrase, but encourages engagement, participation. Leaders and managers could use it a lot more than we do. It opens up the conversation, seeking insight and learning. And when it comes to complex problems like creating system change, insight and learning might just be the holy grail.

So what do you think? How do we create system change? What are all the levers we need to pull?

The other side of the question is the answer, which as always is voluntary. Engagement always is. So whether you are the asking or responding, the choice is up to us. I hope you choose engagement.

Photo by Marcos Luiz Photograph