How Big Is Your Question?

In life, it’s not about what you deserve, what you desire, or even what you hope for. When it comes to the results you generate, and the goals you accomplish, it’s all about what you expect.

Expectation is Everything
I’ve talked about the importance of expectation in a lot of posts so far, and it’s for a good reason – I want to drill it into you as much as possible, because it’s that important. Whatever your level of expectation is, that’s what will fuel your motivation, and in turn drive your action.

If you attack your goals with the expectation that you will eventually win out, you will. It’s that simple, because that level of expectation pushes you to keep working until you find the right combination to unlock your goal.

Expectation Starts With A Question
Expectation begins when you ask yourself a question. The thing is, not all questions are created equal. Some are “weak questions.” A question like “How am I ever going to get out of debt?” is a weak question. It implies weakness. It creates the expectation that debt has the upper hand, and reduces your percieved power. Guess what that does to your resourcefulness, your motivation, your ability to find creative ways out of the situation? If you said, “It destroys it,” you’re absolutely right.

What you want to do is ask strong questions. These kind of questions put you in the drivers seat, because they implicitly create the expectation of empowerment and success. These are questions like “When I figure out the best way to accelerate paying off my debt, what would it be?” or “If I knew the ideal way to motivate myself to lose weight, what would it be?” Questions like these acknowledge the fact that an answer exists, and that you’re going to find it. You can already guess what that level of certainty will do for your ability to get motivated and take action.

Size Matters
But asking a question isn’t enough – you’ve got to ask a question that’s big enough and specific enough. If you ask a question like “How can I get out of debt?” you’re being too vague. The answer may come back to you as a weak one the doesn’t motivate you, because your brain is looking for a way to make things “just a little bit better.”

But ask a bigger question and your whole perspective changes. “If I knew a great way to triple the rate at which I’m paying off my debt, how would I do it?” Ask a big question like that – and ask it to yourself with a strong sense of certainty that you’ll find the way – and your brain will work overtime searching for the answer that works.

What You Should Do Right Now
Right now, take a look at an area of your life where you’re making poor (or no) progress. Think about the questions you’re asking yourself about how to make it better. Really think about this, and you’ll begin to see how you’re essentially asking weak questions in this area. You’re just hoping to find a way to make things better.

Now try this – take your question and make it big. Make it bigger than you know how to answer. Make it big enough that you almost can’t imagine there being an answer, and then decide that you’re going to find one. Don’t just hope you’ll make a million dollars in a year – ask yourself how to do it, and demand that you find the answer that’s out there. Don’t just decide that you’re going to start working on those 50 extra pounds – ask yourself to come up with the best strategy to lose it all safely in 6 months.

Remember, the size of your question determines the size of your answer. Make sure that you’re asking big questions and demanding your brain come up with the answers. Will this work 100% of the time? I can’t guarantee that, though I can say with confidence that you’ll achieve 10,000% more by asking big questions than by settling for the small ones.

There is one thing I can guarantee you, though – you’ll never get the answers to the questions you never ask. So ask big. And demand big. Do it now. You’ll thank yourself for it.