Have you ever been in a conversation with a curious child, desperate to find out why things happen or work in a particular way? Their natural curiosity and need to understand the world around them means they have no boundaries to asking those 'why' questions.
The 5 whys is a useful and simple tool to use when trying to gain more information during a conversation. This tool must be used with that curious child in mind, in a situation when you are comfortable with your surroundings.
The 5 is just a rule of thumb. In some instances you may need to go on and ask 'why' a few more times to get to the root of the conversation. Other times you may get the answers that you require before reaching the 5th 'why' or you may need to move on from 'why' and ask 'what', 'where', 'when' or 'how'!
This simple tool can be used in so many different situations, to uncover the root cause of a situation. It can be used at any point during a project or even a 1-1 conversation. The aim is to be curious and interested, not to take your questioning too far and keep asking why when all avenues have been exhausted.
Reflective Questions
