Life's Most Important Questions

Last week, I wrote about the "Four Cards of Achievement" and an unusual number of folks wrote to say how helpful that was. Many comments specifically focused on the idea of using positive questions to open doors and motivate ourselves, so I thought I'd follow-up on that idea.

[ You can read last week's TIPS (and many past issues) by visiting the archive at: http://philiphumbert.com/TIPS ]

Some people believe that all human behavior is a response to the questions we ask ourselves either consciously or unconsciously. When we are uncomfortable or have a desire, we search our world and ask really simple questions like, "What is there to eat?" or "How can I get more comfortable?"

In slightly more complicated situations, we ask more complex questions, like "What career would excite me?" or "How could I make more money?"

The theory is that as we answer our own questions, our attention is focused, we find answers and we take action.

Personally I am not sure that ALL human action can be explained by such a simple model, but on a practical level, it sure can be helpful.

Everyday, we ask ourselves thousands of questions. We ask "why do I have such bad luck" or, "How could I make this sale?" As we ask and answer these questions, we make assumptions about our world that, in turn, become the basis for our actions.

So the key is to be VERY aware of questions we ask. Many of the most common questions people ask every day are terrible, debilitating questions because they have NO good answer. Think about how your mind works and the things you focus on to answer questions like:

• Why does this always happen to me?
• How come I never get a break?
• How come nobody likes me?
• How come I can't change?

The devastating problem with questions like these is that the brain tries to answer them! It comes up with reasons and arguments to convince you that you can't change, that in fact "nobody" likes you - even though, of course, LOTS of people like you just fine!

Last week I wrote that I start almost every day by sorting through a small stack of positive questions. This morning I counted them, and at the moment my stack happens to have 17 questions in it. (The number varies as I add or replace questions based on how well they seem to be "working" for me.) Here are the four that happened to be on top of my stack today:

1. What one thing, more than any other, will move me toward my goals today?
2. How can I make today a GREAT day?
3. What am I grateful for and who can I thank or acknowledge today?
4. What can I do today that will help me get what I want by helping lots of other people get more of what they want?

I do not share these because I think they are special - you might come up with far more powerful, more motivating, more interesting questions - but they DO make me smile and they to encourage me to get moving. They DO focus me on my goals and they DO help me think of creative, positive actions.

What questions to do you use to jump-start your day? What questions do you use to open doors, make you smile, and find solutions? To a remarkable degree, the questions we ask determine the answers we find and create the life we live. To achieve more, ask more and better questions. While you're at it, make a point to ask the world's BEST questions!

Written by Dr Philip E. Humbert. Visit his website for hundreds of similar articles, tips, tools and resources for your success, and be sure to subscribe to his free newsletter! It's all at: www.Philliphumbert.com