A Question Can Change Everything
Better questions create a better life
Today's Empowering Belief
My focus determines my questions, which determines my actions, which determines my results.
Hey Champion,
The brain is like a Monkey.
It's a Buddhist term, Monkey Mind, which suggests unsettlement, restlessness, indecisiveness, uncontrollable and capricious. We are constantly thinking; I like to call it analysing.
You have, let's say, 6000+ thoughts a day (based on a recent study in 2020) for someone who typically is awake for 16 hours a day. Many are repetitive thoughts; imagine if you could utilise the majority of them into effective thoughts that serve you; how impactful would that be to your life?
Think about this, aren't all our thoughts a bunch of questions?
This very sentence is a thought but also a question. It's like google; the term google it is a query. Every search in google is a question formed in two ways, direct and indirect.
Direct Questions
'what to watch?' - 9,140,000 searches
'Who am I?' - 1,000,000 searches
'Where is my refund?' - 7,480,000 searches
[Source Here]
Indirect Questions
'YouTube' - 1,225,900,000 searches
'December global holidays' - 28,620,000 searches
'Restaurants near me' - 25,150,000 searches
[Source Here]
Our brain is a supercomputer that works similarly; we constantly question and query our brain to find the answer. Where does that information come from? It searches vast knowledge from your life and experiences. What if you don't have the answer? It FORMS the best possible answer.
Not all google results give you the correct answer; it gives you the best possible answer to your query. The answer you get from google is the findings of other people's responses; it's then represented to you.
Similarly, you also provide the parameters in the mind that determines the response.
Asking better questions
Take a moment and audit your thoughts.
Do you constantly think of the negative?
Are your mental questions positive?
Are you asking yourself the right or the wrong questions?
Do you think about your towards or away from motivations?
All questions determine the answer, and those questions come from what you focus on. So what is happening right now in your life? Perhaps you are trying to accomplish something, a task, a presentation, a phone call, a stage talk, starting a business, trying to make money, whatever it is, how can you ask yourself more resourceful questions?
Less Resourceful Questions
What might the brain answer when you ask it the wrong question?
You: Why do I have to do this again?
Brain: Because you did it wrong in the first place
You: Am I ready for this?
Brain: No, you don't want to look like an idiot.
You: I'm not confident!
Brain: You never were; the way you speak doesn't sound like an expert.
You: Is it worth it?
Brain: Don't waste your money like you did last time.
You: What if I try, and it doesn't work?
Brain: It won't; you must try more than once, which will take time.
All of these questions create lousy answers; they will vary from what one mind to another. You can imagine how you'll feel from the response to these answers; you end up down a deep, deeper hole until climbing back out seems so far away.
You see, one bad question can lead to more negative questions.
You: Am I ready for this?
Brain: No, you don't want to look like an idiot.
You: Maybe I’ll wait until I know more about the subject.
Brain: You’re not an expert yet.
Resourceful Questions
I want you to learn to ask yourself better questions, regardless of the experience or circumstances. Find the positive in every situation.
You: How can I make the most of this?
Brain: Own the strengths you have.
You: How can I become the best right now?
Brain: Increase your focus, speak with confidence, and listen more.
You: They meant the best by saying that.
Brain: Some people will look out for you.
You: Are they going through something I've missed?
Brain: Don't make assumptions until you are clear.
You: I wonder if I can create a more powerful bond with this person.
Brain: You can; try it; they'll appreciate you for it.
You: How can I make this fun?
Brain: Make a joke, create happiness in them.
Get focused on the positive so that the questions you ask yourself will empower you to create positive expectations in your results and positive experiences for those around you.
Narrowing your focus
Do you remember Where's Wally?
It was a fantastic childhood memory for me.
Can you find Wally? Go!
Let me know in the Substack Chat when you have; I'm curious who will come first. So I know you have it right, describe who is around him.
What's important here is understanding the strategy people take to find Wally. Let me ask you, can we see him looking at the whole image together? Perhaps not. We must narrow our focus.
We may start in one area of the image; perhaps someone is looking for all the red areas, and another might choose to reduce the smaller places, like the sea to sand.
What we focus on determines the questions we ask.
We might concentrate on a small area of the image and have multiple thoughts.
Why is there a fish standing in the water?
Why would there be a knight on the beach?
What did he look like again?
Narrowing your focus will create better questions. He wears glasses - who is wearing glasses? This immediately removes much of the focus on what doesn't need attention.
The navy seal training uses this technique. To focus on the immediate now, not the next meal, not what others say about them, not how long the journey is, not how hard it is - Just the task at hand.
Using the same technique to condition your mind to see the positives and ask positive questions to excel your chances of success.
What are some of the most recent questions that have been playing on your mind, let me know in the chat.
Champions, every experience you face externally is a question and response internally, so make every thought count!
Get Coaching
Overcome any obstacle in your way. Are you committed to the change? Let’s go from passively reading to actively doing.
Can someone benefit?
The second most impactful thing you can do is contribute this letter forward - invest in someone else’s growth.
Substack’s New feature, Chat.
It’s a great place for conversation, discussion and learning. Have a thought, a question, a positive encouragement, having a tea and want to say hi? Join.
