A few days ago, someone came to me with a problem they needed fixed right away.

My instinct? Jump in, start brainstorming solutions, and get to work.

But instead, I paused and asked a single clarifying question:
"What exactly do you need from me right now?"

Turns out, they didn’t need me to fix the problem at all. They just wanted a quick gut check before moving forward. Five seconds of listening saved me an hour of unnecessary work.

As leaders (and teammates), it’s easy to assume we know the problem and rush to solve it.

But sometimes the fastest way forward isn’t action, it’s asking one good question first.