Influence & Impact for Leaders Ep 199: Ask Better Questions with Joe Lalley
In this episode, I’m joined by Joe Lalley, author of Question to Learn, to explore why questions are one of the most underrated — and misused — leadership tools.
We talk about curiosity, influence, and what really happens when leaders feel they’re supposed to have all the answers.
In this conversation, we explore:
- Why most of us stop asking good questions as our careers progress
- The subtle ways workplace culture rewards answers and punishes curiosity
- The different motives behind questions — and why some shut people down
- How questions can build influence without needing certainty
- What leaders can learn from children, improv, and discomfort
- Why “I don’t know” might be one of the most powerful things a leader can say
- The role curiosity plays in a world increasingly shaped by AI
- Joe’s favourite question — and why it opens doors most people miss
This is Influence & Impact for Leaders, the podcast that helps leaders like you increase your impact and build a happy and high performing team. Each episode delivers focused, actionable insights you can implement immediately, to be better at your job without working harder.
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About Joe Lalley
Joe Lalley is a writer, speaker, and workshop facilitator who has spent much of his career leading innovation workshops for companies of all industries, shapes, and sizes.
Joe has published multiple articles ranging from how to use curiosity to navigate remote work in the pandemic to how to fix the endless cycles of bad, inefficient meetings.
In 2011, Joe completed the Stanford d.school Design Thinking Bootcamp, an intensive program that draws executives from Fortune 500 companies worldwide. As part of a team with peers from Google and Cisco, he worked directly with JetBlue to redesign the passenger ground experience at San Francisco International Airport. Through field research, interviews, and rapid prototyping, Joe and his team presented innovative solutions to JetBlue executives—a transformational experience that helped shape the next chapter of his career.
Joe has held leadership roles at Columbia University, MTV/Viacom, WWE, PwC, and his own consultancy, Joe Lalley Experience Design. His client portfolio spans global brands and organizations such as Meta, Pfizer, Cisco, Chegg, General Assembly, Match Group/Tinder,
Latham & Watkins, and Lam Research, as well as mission-driven groups like the American Physical Society, Optica, Banyan Global, and CAQH.
In October 2025, Lalley released ‘Question to Learn: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Career, Team, and Organization.’
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Mentioned in this episode:
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