A structural problem that has nothing to do with how anyone behaves. > As CEO, your voice is the "loudest in the room." Once people hear your perspective, some percentage will naturally alter their views to more closely match yours. **This % is much higher than you might imagine.** People assume that as CEO, you have more information than they do, and therefore your perspective is probably more correct. ### **What I'm thinking about** 1. **The damage is delayed, which is why it goes unnoticed** – "Later, these same people will not feel fully bought-in to the outcome, because internally they will know that their true thought was not heard." You get agreement in the room and quiet non-commitment afterwards, and the two look identical at the time. 2. **It is caused by position, not personality** – Being warm, curious and explicitly inviting disagreement does not remove it. It reduces it somewhat. The asymmetry of information and authority does the rest. 3. **The countermeasure is sequencing, not tone** – Do not tip your hand before others have shared. Have people write their view down before you speak, or use a simultaneous thumbs up/down so nobody is anchored by whoever went first. 4. **Amazon inverts the order deliberately** – The most junior people speak and ask questions first. A secondary benefit noted by Peter Reinhardt: it surfaces junior talent and gives senior people something to observe and coach. 5. **The three-minute version** – State the problem, then give everyone three minutes to write their proposed solution before anyone speaks. Cheap, fast, and it removes almost all of the anchoring. ### **So what?** Treat "everyone agreed" as weak evidence, especially when you spoke early. The information you actually want is what people thought before they knew what you thought, and the only reliable way to get it is to collect it before you speak. The related discipline is that when you ask what someone thinks, you are asking for their view — not for their read on your view. Most people default to the second unless the format makes it impossible. Related: [[Write Before You Talk]] [[The Rotating Challenger]] [[RAPID]] [[Making People Feel Heard]] [[Silent Coordination]] [[Executive Operating System MOC]]