The Power of Asking Effective Questions

We ask ourselves questions all day long.

“Where are my keys?” “What do I want for lunch?” “What should I do next?”

Sometimes the questions we ask serve us. At other times, they do us a disservice. “Why can’t I do anything right?” is an example of such a question. Our brains will always attempt to answer our questions, even if it has to make up the answers.

Asking yourself better questions is a great way to improve your life. Better questions will result in getting better answers.

Try these ideas to harness the power of asking more effective questions:

1. Develop a set of questions that you can ask yourself before you even get out of bed. These questions should serve to motivate you and get you in the mood to have a great day. Consider these examples:

• “What can I do to enjoy work today?”
  • “What am I grateful for in my life right now?”
  • “Whom can I help today?”
  • Develop your own questions to inspire and motivate you!

• Pay attention to the questions that you ask yourself throughout the day. Make note of the questions that make your life more challenging. Correct yourself on the spot and come up with a better question. As an example, “Why can’t I ever be on time?” could become, “What can I do to be on time from now on?”

• You will be surprised by how many of the questions you habitually ask yourself are disempowering. We’re all sabotaging ourselves! We can turn the tables and support ourselves.
  
  
  • Do you think a highly successful person asks the same questions every day that the average person asks? Probably not. Successful people ask questions that empower them.
    
    
• Apply the same idea to your interactions with others. Many of the questions we ask others make them defensive, and a solution becomes more difficult to find. Instead, ask questions that help you both.

• For example, if one of your employees isn’t getting along well with his co-workers, you could ask him, “What can we do to increase the level of harmony within our group?” This is more effective than asking, “Why can’t you ever get along with anyone?”

• The effectiveness of your communication will increase dramatically simply by asking better questions and using the answers wisely.
  
  
  
  

• Ask questions during challenging times. When you first notice yourself slipping into a negative emotional state, use questions to find a solution. Questions focus our attention.

• When your attention is on solutions, you tend to find solutions.
• When your attention is on the challenge, the challenge tends to grow.
  
  
• Ask questions that support your goals. If you’re trying to lose weight, ask yourself about healthy food choices. “What could I eat for lunch that would taste delicious but still support my weight loss goal?” Develop some questions that will assist you in accomplishing your goals.
  
  
• Create a set of questions to ask yourself at the end of the day. Many of your morning questions might be suitable. Ask yourself about your day. What was great? What did you learn? How will you do better tomorrow?

Questions are a powerful aspect of language. They determine our focus and ultimately have a profound effect on our level of success. We can use questions to improve our relationships. They can even help us to have a good day and a restful night’s sleep. Asking more effective questions is a powerful tool.

Learn to harness the power of asking effective questions. Your life will improve in surprising ways.