This simple habit delivers a significant impact by uncovering assumptions, root causes and new ideas.

Here's how it works. You ask "Why?" 5 times. It's that simple.

Let's walk through an example. Imagine a conversation between a father and son.
Dad: Why are you home in the middle of the day?
Kid: Dad, I can't go to class.
Dad: Why?
Kid: The car won't start
Dad: Why?
Kid: The battery is dead
Dad: Why is the battery dead?
Kid: It's been an issue; I think the alternator isn't working.
Dad: Why do you think that?
Kid: It's one of the error codes on the dashboard.

The key is to move past symptoms to causal factors.

Suppose the dad stopped after even the third why then he'd be replacing a battery that would soon be dead. You can imagine even more questions coming after this dialogue about underlying issues like regular maintenance.

Five isn't a magical number, but it's enough to get to underlying causes but not so many that you start to frustrate people. The key is to move past symptoms to causal factors.

I don't feel like every question has to be, "Why?" Asking "How? When? What? or Where?" can also be helpful, but "Why?" seems to be the most effective at getting to the cause of things.

I will use the 5 Whys in one of two ways:

1. I tell everyone I'm using it to facilitate a discussion challenging the team to keep digging deeper.
2. I can also use it subtly by keeping a curious posture and continuing to ask questions.

This habit is a great one to teach your team. It will empower each one to do the discovery work that's necessary to leadership.

Reflection Questions:

1. When do you not ask why and end up treating a symptom rather than a cause?
2. When will you apply the 5 Whys?

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