What Do You Think?

When someone asks for your opinion, are you inclined to give it straightaway or do you hesitate while trying to understand why they're asking?

Today, two people approached me with questions that caught me off-guard. Both began with What do you think...? And funny enough, or not so funny, I gave my candid opinion in each instance without much hesitation. One question was on a very controversial issue, and the other was posed by a very senior individual. Given the contexts of both cases, there wasn't a lot of time for dialogue, and rather than respond along the lines of Let me get back to you, I shot from the hip. So, stay tuned to see if there's any fallout.