Tips for forming hypotheses

• Ask open-ended questions (those that require more than a "yes" or "no" response). They generate more valuable information than closed questions (which require a simple "yes" or "no") do.
• Spend more time listening and observing than you do talking and judging.
• Don't try to psychoanalyze your direct report based on your observations of his or her behavior. Doing so is inappropriate.
• Don't pry into an individual's personal life or make judgments about his or her character or motivations in order to interpret your observations.
• Don't use your own performance as a yardstick to measure others. Assuming that your direct reports have the same motivations or strengths as you do is unrealistic and unfair.