Words Into Works #027 | Quality Questions

In his book Awaken the Giant Within, Tony Robbins posits that thinking is nothing more than the process of asking and answering questions. Further, he reasons that if we can ask better (quality) questions, we can control our focus better and achieve more.

A quality question accomplishes three specific things, says Robbins:

1. They immediately change what we’re focusing on and, therefore, how we feel;
2. They change what we delete (in other words, what we don’t focus on); and
3. They change the resources available to us.

Asking a question like, “What am I choosing not to see right now?” when facing a problem is an example of a quality question. By asking a question like that, you move your attention from personal (“Why does this always happen to me?”) to impersonal, filter out non-essential information and focus on the things over which we have complete control.

For years, I’ve been noting down my favorite quality questions from books I read and even people I follow on Twitter and adding them to a running list I can refer to. To get you thinking about how you can use quality questions in your life and work, here are nine favorites I return to often:

1. “What’s good about this problem? What can I learn from this?” (Source: Awaken the Giant Within)
2. “What am I choosing not to see right now?” (Source: The Obstacle is the Way)
3. “What is the worst-case scenario if I did what I’m considering?” (Source: The 4-Hour Workweek)
4. “Is what I am doing, this minute, moving me measurably closer to my goals?” (Source: No B.S. Time Management for Entrepreneurs)
5. “Will this activity or effort make the highest possible contribution towards my goal?” (Source: Essentialism)
6. “Is this necessary?” (Source: Meditations)
7. “What am I giving up by making this choice?” (Source: Decisive)
8. “What thoughts are going through my mind right now? What am I saying to myself? Why is this upsetting me?” (Source: Feeling Good)
9. “What if I’m wrong?” (Source: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck)

Get into the habit of asking better, quality questions when encountering problems. Doing so will open you up to alternate perspectives and solutions you might not have considered otherwise.