In business and in life, being right a lot isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about having the right mindset. It’s not the loudest voice in the room, nor the most confident one, that’s usually right. It’s the one that listens deeply, adapts quickly, and questions consistently.
Through years of running a business, leading teams, and learning from mistakes, I’ve come to realize that the people who are right most of the time share three key traits:
1. They listen more than they talk
Good listeners don’t just hear; they observe, absorb, and reflect. They ask more questions than they give answers. They seek to understand first, second only to be understood (from Stephen R. Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People). In my experience, the best business decisions often came after I truly listened to what my family, staff, customers or even critics were trying to say.
Listening well is a sign of strength, not weakness. It means you’re open to ideas bigger than your own. How about you?
2. They change their minds — a lot
Being wrong is not a failure. Refusing to change when you know better — that’s the real failure. Some of my most important breakthroughs came after I let go of old ways of thinking and tried something new.
People who are right a lot don’t cling to their opinions. They revise. They adjust. They learn. In fact, the quicker you can say “I was wrong,” the quicker you can get back on the path to being right.
3. They question their deepest beliefs
This is the hardest part. It’s easy to question someone else’s thinking, but it takes courage to question your own. What if the strategy you’ve believed in for years no longer works? What if the business rule you’ve followed since day one no longer applies in today’s world?
The best leaders don’t hold on too tightly. They hold their beliefs lightly, always ready to reshape them as new truths emerge.
Final thoughts
So how do you become someone who’s right a lot?
You don’t try to be perfect. You try to stay curious. You learn to listen more, change faster, and question deeper. Because in the long run, it’s not pride that builds a lasting business or a good life; it’s wisdom.
And wisdom often begins with these three words: “Tell me more.”