Questions

 

     It seems that from the moment we are able to speak we begin to ask questions.  Maybe we are even asking questions within our minds before that time!  The point is that as humans we are  very inquisitive creatures.  We always want to know the answers.  Even if we don’t understand the question that is being asked.

     According to Success.com (https://www.success.com/6-underlying-benefits-of-asking-questions/#:~:text=It's%20helpful%20in%20discovering%20a,to%20move%20forward%20in%20life. ) “Questions push people to figure out the answers on their own. The question system has been used by coaches of elite athletes and almost all therapists. It’s helpful in discovering a person’s individual way of thinking and their mental blocks, and in applying specific mindsets to help them achieve their goals.” 

     When we ask or are being asked the right questions, we can gain the information we need to move forward in our lives.  We can continue to grow in who we are as a person. But we have to admit that at certain times and under certain circumstances we do not have a need or perhaps even the right to know the answers to certain questions.

    QBQ in an online article (https://qbq.com/15-reasons-to-ask-questions/ ) made a listing of 15 reasons to ask questions.  I’d like to share their list with you:

1.      To acquire knowledge

 

2.      To eliminate confusion

 

     3.   To cause someone else to feel special/important

 

     4.   To guide a conversation in the direction we want it to go

 

     5.   To demonstrate humility to another

 

     6.   To enable a person to discover answers for themselves

 

     7.   To gain empathy through better understanding another’s view

 

     8.   To influence/alter someone else’s opinion/view

 

     9.   To begin a relationship

 

     10.   To strengthen a relationship

 

     11.   To humbly show we have knowledge on a specific topic

 

     12.   To stimulate creativity and idea generation

 

     13.   To gain a person’s attention

 

     14.   To solve a problem

 

     15.   To reach agreement or to “agree to disagree” with clarity

 

     As you can see this is a very interesting, but probably not exhaustive list of why we might ask a question. There are times however when we may feel that it is not appropriate to ask a question because we would be embarrassed to do so.  We may find ourselves in a classroom situation or maybe even in a seminar with very distinguished individuals and this may to some degree intimidate us.

 

     I recall years ago in one of my college classes the professor made a very interesting comment that I have not forgotten it even to this day.  He told us that there was going to be many things discussed in his class and we will probably have many questions going through our minds.  Then he added, “Just remember, the only dumb question is the one you do not ask.”

 

     That same article from QBQ also mentioned that there may be reasons why we SHOULD NOT ask a question.

 

      1. To find a culprit

 

      2.  To embarrass and shame

 

      3.  To appear superior

 

4.      To create fear

 

      5.  To manipulate

 

      6.  To play the victim, as in, “Why is this happening to me?”

 

     There is a very interesting video on YOUTUBE with educator Karen Maeyens where she explores the power of asking questions as keys that open endless possibilities.  I think you would enjoy watching and listening to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZIuAQw8RA4

 

     The ability to ask good and upbuilding questions is a skill that we all should seek to develop within ourselves.  However, for some reason as we grow older, we begin to ask fewer and fewer questions.  Do we feel we know all that we need to know to live the remainder of our lives?  Or perhaps we feel that we have greater difficulty finding the answers we seek to our questions so there is no basis for us to ask?

 

     Whatever our reasons may be, we need to look beyond that barrier and know that somewhere there is the answer to our question.  Maybe we are asking it wrong?  Maybe we are not looking to the right source for the answers we are seeking?  Maybe we have become tired of our search and no longer have the desire to really find out the answer? 

 

     We must also realize that perhaps the current answer to our question has been given to us and we have failed to recognize what it is?  Maybe our answer is that we have to wait to receive that which we seek.  Perhaps our answer is simply: “You don’t need to know the answer to that question?”

 

     Will be willing to wait?  Will we continue to seek in all areas available to us?  Or will we decide that the answer is not really worth all the time and efforts?  Maybe we reach a point in our lives where we just feel that we no longer want to know the answer to our question! 

 

     We need to recognize that it is within the human nature to seek answers to questions and we have to find the solutions in our quest for finding them.  We have to realize that this is who we are as creatures of curiosity.  Never forget: “We’re only human!”

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"It's hard to give an answer

when you don't understand the question."