Questions! Let’s try one. What colour is your house? You thought about the colour of your house, right?

Here are more fun questions. What are you proud of? What makes you most happy? Take a moment, think about that.

When you ask yourself a question, your brain is focused on that question. In fact, it works to answer the question.

Questions are a powerful way to focus your mind. When you hear a question, it momentarily hijacks your thought process on the question.

You didn’t consciously tell your brain to think about the question and answer it; it just did so automatically.

Questions are powerful. Hearing a question affects what our brains do in that instant It can also shape our future behaviours.

Questions trigger a mental reflex known as “instinctive elaboration”. When a question is posed, it takes over the brain’s thought process, and when your brain is thinking about the answer to a question, it can’t focus on anything else.

If you are solving a problem asking, “why is this happening to me?” may not be the best question to ask.

Perhaps a better question could be, “what do I need to make this situation better”?

3 Powerful Focus Questions.

Here are three questions to help focus your mind on solutions rather than problems.

The first question is about Vision or the Outcome you want.
What do you want? (What are your goals?)

The second question is about purpose and reinforces your focus on the first question.
Why do you want that? (Why is it important to you)?

The third question is about action.
How will you get what you want? What’s your plan?

These three broad-based questions are beneficial in refocusing your mind away from over-thinking problems and more on what’s required to help you take the next best step toward a solution.

Have these questions or others you may come up with on a poster in your room or perhaps on your computer or phone.

Have a visual prompt of powerful questions that steer your focus and attention toward feeling better and toward positive actions.

The College Library