I’ve had a few glaringly obvious moments lately, which have been timely reminders really.
One was about the art of the question. You see, there is always an answer, but without a question, you pull a blank.
And sometimes the right question takes some time to be conjured up. But once you’ve got it, the world really seems to open up, and help you find your answer.
Google is a great test for this. You see, chances are, someone else has already asked you question, and probably even found their own answer.
An example of this is productivity software. I’ve recently been trying to streamline the various pieces of productivity software I have, to remove the overlap between programs, and reduce the human hours by increasing the automated technology hours, to improve my own hight value time.
But it wasn’t until I’d worked out the language I needed to ask, to get the answer I was looking for.
This also happened when I was hiring my first virtual team member.
I read the book. I pondered. I pondered some more. Then one day, I decided to take the leap and jumped on Google to see what I could find. And it was all right there. The definitive how to guide, in bite sized, snap shot, pieces of info, with links to take action and make it happen. And that’s how it was different to the books. The book gave me the confidence to understand the pitfalls and make informed choices to increase my likelihood of success, but it was getting the action going that made a difference to producing the results, and focusing on production rather than perfection, and refining the production as I go.
This is another reminder, not to do things solo. Test out your questions, see what response you get. Was it what you expected? On the basis of the response, did you ask the right question?
And if you are struggling a bit, perhaps you need someone else asking the questions. A coach, a mentor, a friend, a fabulous aunt…
Seek out people in your village… ask them questions, and let them ask questions of you.
Rx
