Why should we ask questions - Book Recommendations

A More Beautiful Question, The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas by Warren Berger

Why should we ask questions

The art of questioning is well known to be at the heart of many major discoveries
So why did we used to ask so many questions at the age of 4? And why as we grow up we become less curious? One reason can be that our school system emphasizes on discipline and memorization.

The importance of questioning

Asking naïve questions starting with “why” can be seen as foolish or disrespectful, for this reason, people overestimate their knowledge by pretending to know things because they are too scared to ask.
Asking questions have been proven to spark breakthrough ideas and inspire innovations. Asking a sequence of questions, as we look for an answer have the power to reveal what we do not yet know.
A beautiful question is an ambitious yet actionable question that can begin to shift the way we perceive or think about something - and that might serve as a catalyst to bring about change.

Formulate more beautiful questions by using Why, Why Not, What if and How.

By asking “why” it helps identify the problem. And a good trick is to ask 5 consecutive “why” to get to the bottom of complex issues.
Use “why not” to challenge the status quo and force ourselves to rethink the way things are done.
Find solutions by asking “what if” questions, it allows us to think about ideas that are sometimes very strange or completely false, but it welcomes ideas that are outside the box.
Instead of brainstorming, try “question storming”. Identify the problem with “why” and use “what if” before stating each idea.
The hardest question is asking “how”, tons of ideas has been generated on the “what if” stage and to start working on the solution you have to start narrowing it down.
The best way to share an idea and test it out is to be visual.

Let’s put it into practice
Question in business:
- Why are we in business?
- What if our company didn’t exist?
- How can I make the experimentation better?

Questions to set a course of action in life:
- Why am I climbing the mountain?
- What if I took a different path?
- How do I get started?

Asking ourselves some questions and answer them honestly, will give meaning to our actions. Once you know what you want, asking questions allows you to stay on track and ahead of the competition.

For a video on the art of war: