Workplace Multiplier by Tola Akinsulire

April 30, 2026

Welcome to the Workplace Multiplier newsletter. Published Monday to Friday, equipping you to achieve your professional goals faster and without burnout or overwhelm.

The three questions that change everything

Howdy ,

This week we have covered some uncomfortable ground.

The door you think is open. The ceiling you did not know you were. The cost of staying comfortable while your best people quietly outgrow you.

Today I want to give you something practical.

Not a framework. Not a five-step model with a clever acronym.

Just three questions that will tell you more about your team in one honest conversation than a year of performance reviews.

But first, a warning.

Do not ask these questions unless you are prepared to act on the answers.

Nothing destroys psychological safety faster than a leader who asks good questions and then does nothing with what they hear.

Your team is watching what you do after the conversation far more than they are listening during it.

If you ask and disappear, you will never get the real answer again.

Ask only if you mean it.

Question one: "What part of your work is currently making the best use of you?"

Not "how are things going." Not "are you happy."

Those questions get you polished answers.

This question gets you something more specific…it tells you where someone feels genuinely stretched versus where they feel underused. And the gap between those two things is where your leadership work lives.

Listen for the pause before they answer. That pause is usually where the real information is.

Question two: "What would you like to do more of that you are not currently getting the chance to do?"

This is the appetite question.

Most leaders assume they know what their team wants. More money. A better title. Less pressure.

Sometimes that is true.

But often what people want is simpler and more specific…a different kind of problem to solve, exposure to a part of the business they have not touched, the chance to lead something from the front.

You cannot bake a bigger pie if you do not know what flavor they are hungry for.

Do not guess. Ask.

Then…and this is the part most leaders skip…write it down. In front of them. So they know you heard it and intend to do something with it.

That single gesture changes the entire dynamic of the conversation.

Question three: "What would make you feel like this place is investing in you?"

This is the one that requires the most courage…from both of you.

Because it is an open invitation for honest feedback about your leadership and your organization.

Some of what you hear will be things you cannot fix immediately.

Say that. Honestly.

"I hear you. I cannot promise that happens next week. But I want you to know I am taking this seriously and here is what I can do in the next 30 days."

That response…specific, honest, bounded…does more for retention and loyalty than almost anything else in your leadership toolkit.

Because what people need more than a perfect answer is evidence that you are genuinely paying attention.

Here is your one action for today.

Pick one person on your team. Not the one who seems most disengaged…start with someone you trust. Ask them these three questions. Listen more than you speak. Write down what you hear.

Then come back tomorrow.

Because Friday I want to close this week with the bigger picture…what this kind of leadership actually builds over time, and why it matters more now than it ever has.

Keep winning at work and in life.

Tola Akinsulire

Your Strategic Workplace Mentor