A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas

To get the best answer―in business, in life―you have to ask the best possible question. Innovation expert Warren Berger shows that ability is both an art and a science.

It may be the most underappreciated tool at our disposal, one we learn to use well in infancy―and then abandon as we grow older. Critical to learning, innovation, success, even to happiness―yet often discouraged in our schools and workplaces―it can unlock new business opportunities and reinvent industries, spark creative insights at many levels, and provide a transformative new outlook on life. It is the ability to question―and to do so deeply, imaginatively, and “beautifully.”

In this fascinating exploration of the surprising power of questioning, innovation expert Warren Berger reveals that powerhouse businesses like Google, Nike, and Netflix, as well as hot Silicon Valley startups like Pandora and Airbnb, are fueled by the ability to ask fundamental, game-changing questions. But Berger also shares human stories of people using questioning to solve everyday problems―from “How can I adapt my career in a time of constant change?” to “How can I step back from the daily rush and figure out what really makes me happy?”

By showing how to approach questioning with an open, curious mind and a willingness to work through a series of “Why,” “What if,” and “How” queries, Berger offers an inspiring framework of how we can all arrive at better solutions, fresh possibilities, and greater success in business and life.

Warren Berger has studied hundreds of the world's leading innovators, entrepreneurs, and creative thinkers to learn how they ask questions, generate original ideas, and solve problems. His writing and research on questioning appears regularly in Fast Company and Harvard Business Review. He is the author of the internationally acclaimed book Glimmer, a groundbreaking analysis of innovative thinking that was named one of Businessweek's Best Innovation and Design Books of 2009. Berger has appeared on NBC's Today Show, ABC's World News, CNN, and NPR's All Things Considered. He lives in New York. His website is www.AMoreBeautifulQuestion.com.