The questions you ask separate you from other people.
This statement is two-fold: 1. It implies that you’re going to ask questions in the first place and 2. It says that you’re going to ask the right questions.
And when I think of the right questions…they are the ones that get you the most bang for your buck. The questions that you aren’t afraid to ask, the ones that cut right to the core.
Here are my favorite passages on questions
Tools Of Titans - Tim Ferriss - He breaks down questions to ask athletes when trying to learn a sport. Drop [sport] and insert any skill you’re trying to learn. The questions are all his, but I put them in my favorite order.
- Who is good at [sport] despite being poorly built for it? Who’s good at this who shouldn’t be?
- If you were to train me for 12 weeks for a [fill in the blank] competition and had a million dollars on the line, what would the training look like? What if I trained for 8 weeks?
- Who are the most controversial or unorthodox athletes or trainers in [sport]? Why? What do you think of them?
- What makes you different? Who trained you or influenced you?
- What are the biggest mistakes and myths you see in [sport] training? What are the biggest wastes of time?
- Have you trained others to do this? Have they replicated your results?
- What are your favorite instructional books or resources on the subject? if people had to teach themselves, what would you suggest they use?
- What are the biggest mistakes novices make when [doing sport]? What are the biggest misuses of time?
- What mistakes are most common, even at the pro level?
- What does the progression of exercises look like?
- Who are the most impressive lesser-known teachers?
Secrets of consulting - Gerald M. Weinberg - When giving advice for ramping up to a new environment. Again, this is for consulting but can be applied to anything.
- “The diversity of people can frustrate any consultant because he or she must assess the individual characteristics of each new environment but when it comes to seeing what’s mission, diversity is your ally.
Pose the question “what am I missing?” to as many people as you can find.
Approach insiders for their long familiarity with the situation. Use outsiders for the fresh, naive view. Recruit people at different levels, with different roles, and with different backgrounds. Listen to their first impressions, but also allow the questions to simmer in their minds.”
Though not questions, the theme of questioning keep coming up:
Principles - Ray Dalio - The “Who” of asking questions
- “One of the most important decisions you can make is who you ask questions of. Make sure they’re fully informed and believable. Find out who is responsibility for whatever you are seeking to understand and then ask them. Listing to uninformed people is worse that having no answers at all.”
- “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”
January 30th, 2018 10:01am
Written by
Greg Kamradt
At
Tue Jan 30 2018