Before you ask a question that may have a damaging answer, mentally double check to make sure you are prepared and ready to accept the worst possible answer. If you’re not, don’t ask the question.
Often people will ask me a sensitive question without fully realizing the ramifications of an unexpected answer. This could be an opinion of a person, or an evaluation of a project that the asker has championed. A positive, emotionally supportive answer is expected. If instead the answer is negative, the questioner will usually get defensive and the conversation will become strained.
That is an outcome that no one wants and that produces no value for either participant or for the organization. Before getting into that situation it’s far better to either frame your question in a way that leads to the type of answer you’re looking for, or to let unspoken criticisms remain unspoken.