Example 1
Opening a call with a frustrated office manager
Before
“So, everything working okay with the scheduling?”
That is a yes/no question about a system, asked of someone who is annoyed. She will say “fine” and you will learn nothing.
After
“Walk me through what this morning looked like at the front desk.”
Open, specific to her day, and impossible to answer in one word. It also signals you care about her morning, not our uptime.