Some of the best insight we can gather on our journey to build and strengthen our character can come in the form of questions.  Throughout my own life’s journey, some of my greatest learnings were when someone asked me a question which allowed me to learn and grow as I attempted to respond.  Many times, the question helped to highlight a weakness or shortcoming that needed to be addressed.  On the contrary, when others just provide the ‘answer’ or tell us ‘what to do,’ they hinder growth and many times create a cycle of dependence on someone else providing the answer or showing us the way.  Questions enable growth and we should embrace them as opportunities instead of disruptions.

I can recall a particularly painful learning in my professional life when I was standing in front of a large group seeking funding for a new opportunity.  After the long presentation, the leader of the business asked me a critical question, “Is this consistent with our strategy?”  That one simple question revealed a great deal of insight and none of it was particularly flattering to me. Did I even know the strategy of our business?  Did I even know what strategy meant?  Did I think that this very successful business and the leader who built it have the wrong strategy?  I could go on, but I think you get the point.  Asking the right question can bring about a great deal of growth instead of just providing the answer.

On a more personal level, I think we all have experienced a moment when we heard something, read something, or observed something that was particularly meaningful to us.  The experience stirred in our hearts a desire to change or incorporate that learning into our lives.   Whether we gained some insight from a speaker, found something helpful in a book, received some relevant comments from a coworker, or a family member’s ‘tough love’ helped us to acknowledge some shortcoming we had not been willing to admit.  When we encounter truth in these experiences, many times we are moved to action.

When we encounter truth and our hearts are stirred to action, asking the right questions will help us to move further along on our journey to build and strengthen our character.   Upon hearing some insight and being moved to change, now is the time to ask two important questions:

(1)        What will I do differently as a result of this insight?

(2)        How will I hold myself accountable to deliver on it?

There are several ways to personalize our answers to these questions, but the basic intent is to clarify the learning, take action, and measure and monitor our progress.  We all have occasions where we knew we encountered truth and were momentarily moved to action, but it did not stick.  We let the ‘feel good’ moment pass and become just another missed opportunity to learn and grow.

Asking the right questions in order to move beyond the ‘feel good’ moment and take action will help build and strengthen our character and Character Creates Opportunity® to continue to learn and grow.  Let’s all keep asking the right questions.