Summary
Who Moved My Cheese?showed readers how to adapt to change. Fish!helped raise flagging morale. Executionguided readers to overcome the inability to get things done. QBQ! The Question Behind the Question, already a phenomenon in its self-published edition, addresses the most important issue in business and society today: personal accountability. The lack of personal accountability has resulted in an epidemic of blame, complaining, and procrastination. No organization-or individual-can achieve goals, compete in the marketplace, fulfill a vision, or develop people and teams without personal accountability. The solution involves an entirely new approach. We can no longer ask, "Who dropped the ball?" "Why can't they do their work properly?" or "Why do we have to go through all these changes?" Instead, every individual has to ask the question behind the question: "How can I improve this situation?" "What can I contribute?" or "How can I make a difference?" Succinct, insightful, and practical, QBQ! The Question Behind the Questionprovides a method for putting personal accountability into daily action, which can bring astonishing results: problems get solved, barriers come down, service improves, teamwork grows, and people adapt to change.
Author Biography
John G. Miller is the founder of QBQ, Inc., an organizational development firm dedicated to making personal accountability a core value for companies and individuals. Miller gives some one hundred keynote speeches a year and, along with a nationwide network of QBQ-trained consultants, has brought his message to countless corporations including American Express, Blockbuster, Wells Fargo, Verizon Wireless, Merck, and ConAgra.
Table of Contents
Introduction What Ever Happened To... |
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1 | (35) |
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1. A Picture of Personal Accountability |
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6 | (8) |
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14 | (3) |
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3. QBQ! The Question Behind the Question |
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17 | (3) |
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20 | (4) |
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24 | (2) |
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6. "Why Is This Happening to Me?" |
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26 | (2) |
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7. "Why Do We Have to Go Through All This Change?" |
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28 | (4) |
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8. "Why Don't They Communicate Better?" |
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32 | (1) |
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33 | (3) |
10. Procrastination: The Friend of Failure |
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36 | (3) |
11. "When Will We Get More Tools and Better Systems?" |
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39 | (2) |
12. "When Are We Going to Hear Something New?" |
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41 | (2) |
13. Don't Ask "Who?" |
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43 | (5) |
14. A Poor Sailor Blames the Wind |
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48 | (2) |
15. Silos |
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50 | (3) |
16. Beat the Ref |
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53 | (3) |
17. "Who Dropped the Ball?" |
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56 | (3) |
18. Ownership |
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59 | (2) |
19. The Foundation of Teamwork |
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61 | (2) |
20. Making Accountability Personal: All QBQs Contain an "I" |
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63 | (3) |
21. I Can Only Change Me |
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66 | (5) |
22. "He Didn't, I Did" |
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71 | (2) |
23. "When Will Others Walk Their Talk?" |
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73 | (3) |
24. An Integrity Test |
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76 | (1) |
25. The Power of One |
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77 | (2) |
26. A QBQ Twist |
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79 | (1) |
27. Will the Real Role Models Please Stand Up! |
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80 | (1) |
28. Practicing Personal Accountability: |
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All QBQs Focus on Action |
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81 | (3) |
29. The Risk of Doing Nothing |
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84 | (2) |
30. "Thanks for Shopping at the Home Depot!" |
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86 | (5) |
31. Leaders at All Levels |
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91 | (3) |
32. The Cornerstone of Leadership |
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94 | (2) |
33. Leaders Are Not Problem Solvers |
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96 | (2) |
34. A Great List of Lousy Questions |
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98 | (8) |
35. The Spirit of the QBQ |
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106 | (3) |
36. Wisdom |
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109 | (1) |
37. We Buy Too Many Books |
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110 | (1) |
38. A Final Picture |
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111 | (4) |
39. The Motor of Learning |
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115 | |