3 Questions That Will Change Your Business (and Life)

Asking questions (well rather, asking the “right” questions) have an amazing way of getting to the heart of the matter.  There are many benefits to asking questions – whether you’re asking questions to others or asking them to yourself. It’s a powerful tool and often overlooked.

This is not the first time I’ve spoken about the power of questions. I even created a video about a year ago on this very topic. P.S. That’s my old site, so ignore the closing statements.

I still believe in the power of “what if” and “what must” questions, but the quality of my questions have not only evolved, but so has their impact and meaning. I truly believe that if I had asked myself these three questions just a year ago, they would have not had the same impact in my business and life then it does today.

Why?

Because as you’re evolving as an entrepreneur (and as a human being in general) you are only open to what you’re ready for. A year ago, I don’t think I was TRULY ready for these types of questions. I hadn’t yet learned what I had learned this past year … I had not yet stepped into a new awareness of what’s possible in my business (and in my life).

But I’m going to share these questions with you. Maybe you’ll be open to them … maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll read them and think nothing of it … maybe you’ll read them and it will shift your whole world.

My recommendation is this – read them and then listen for them. When I say listen, I mean listen to what comes up in your thoughts as you ask each question and contemplate the answer.

Here are the three very simple, yet powerful, questions:

How do I give value today?

How do I bring love into my life today?

How do I make a sale today?

Bonus question:

What’s the complete opposite of what I’m doing now?

You’re probably a bit confused right now. I’m sure you have your OWN questions about these questions. I’m going to dive into your mind and address some questions you may have and at the same time dive deeper into the power of each of these questions.

How do I give value today?

I heard your question before you even said it … “But I ALREADY give tons of value!” Let me just say, it’s NOT that I don’t think you’re giving value each and every day in your business, but rather it’s the type of value you’re giving and HOW you may be providing value.

Most of us (and I’m talking from experience) give value coming from one or two perspectives – what is it that I think others want and value and/or what can I expect to get when I give “this.”

Here’s the problem with the first scenario (giving what you think others want). What you perceive as value and what others find valuable can very be different. For example, I may value a massage and would be willing to spend up to $200 an hour for one, while someone else may only be willing to spend up to $100 for that same massage. The end result is the same; how we each determine it’s value is very different.

Value is subjective…

Therefore it’s important when providing value that you come from a place of “what is it that my target audience finds valuable?” not “what do I think they find valuable?”

Moving on to the second scenario (what can I expect to get when I give “this.”)  I am not saying there’s anything wrong with wanting to get something in exchange for you giving something. There can’t be a giving without a getting, and vice versa. This is not about what’s “wrong or right.” This is about your intention behind the giving.  There’s a certain “vibe” that comes across when you are giving to get as oppose to giving for the sake of giving, don’t you think?

Give value because you truly desire to be of service and if you believe in karma (like I do) you will be rewarded in the unlikeliest of ways.  Ask yourself, who can I be of service to today and what value can I bring to them? 

It can be as simple as answering a quick question, shooting out an email, a friendly phone call to a friend – no expectations – just the simple desire to enrich the lives of others.

How do I bring love into my life today?

I’m hearing you loud and clear on this one – “what does bringing love into my life” have to do with my business. If you’re asking this question, then you really need to concentration on this one! No worries. There is still hope for you yet.

I know people tend to get weird when you talk about love, especially when it comes to business. But adding love into your life on a daily basis, in one form or another, can alter the face of your business. Just imagine what your business (and life) would look like if you committed to doing the things you loved?

Love speaking? How would your business benefit by doing more speaking engagements?

Love hosting workshops? Love writing? Love chatting on social media? Love helping people? Love coaching? Love transforming the lives of others?

What would your business look life if you focused on doing more of the things you loved to do and less of the things you don’t?

Think about it …

How do I make a sale today?

Don’t get squirmy on my now. At the end of the day, you don’t think about sales you don’t have a business! I recently wrote an article ‘How to ask for the Sale (and what NOT to do)‘ that I feel you may find helpful if you’re the “I hate sales” type.

But this is a VERY important question you need to be asking yourself each and every day you work on your business. I can say with absolute certainty that just a year ago I was asking all kinds of questions, EXCEPT this one, and it was having a crippling affect on my business. I was focusing on everything BUT the sale.

Like I said before … some things you have to be ready for. The conversation on sales was not something I was open to a year ago. I wanted sales; but I was not actively thinking about sales on a regular basis … BIG difference.  I assumed I would do everything else and the sale would just happen naturally … NOT.

You have to ask for the sale.

What’s the complete opposite of what I’m doing now?

I got to thinking not too long ago.  I said “Michele, why is it that 1% of the population holds the majority of the wealth in this country? And why is it that only 5% (may have changed a bit recently) make more than 100K each year in their business?” There has to be a reason for this!

Then it hit me with such clarity that I wondered why it was it took me so long to figure it out.

The minority that are successful and are able to generate the majority of the income in this country are thinking and behaving differently than the rest of us!

Such a simple concept, yet when you TRULY understand the power behind this, it will transform your life.

Most of us go about our lives day by day:

• doing the same things expecting different results
• doing different things expecting the same results
• not being consistent with our actions AND/OR
• choosing to give up on our ideas because we’ve become impatient or bored

… present company included!

I recently heard Adam Urbanski tell a story how he was getting bored telling his “story” and how the lovely and talented Melanie Benson Strick told him, “as soon as you begin getting bored with your story, is when others start hearing it.” Wow! Isn’t that one of the most insightful things you’ve ever heard?

So I started thinking, what would happen if every time I do something in my business, I thought to myself, “what’s the complete opposite of this?”

Here the benefit of doing so …

If you’re part of the majority of us who earns less than 100K in your business (I feel your pain ), then there’s something in your thinking and behaving that’s not allowing you to break out of that statistic. There is something you’re not acknowledging, doing, or how you’re BEING that’s keeping you stuck in this place.

If you were to ask yourself, “what’s the complete opposite of what I’m doing right now?”, it can add a new awareness to your thinking that was not there before; it can add a new perspective.

If you’ve always thought that the only way to get C was to do A and B, but yet you don’t seem to be getting C – no matter how much you try – maybe instead of going for C, try X + Y = Z.

Sometimes we get sooo stuck and attached on C that we don’t realize that maybe it’s Z we really should be going for.

I know this sounds all a bit crazy, but my intention is to get you to think and understand that maybe you’re trying desperately to get past this one door that won’t seem to open, when all you need to do is turn around and see that maybe there’s another door you can use instead.

My rationale behind the ‘what’s the complete opposite’ exercise is that maybe our ‘going with the masses’ thinking is what’s keeping us stagnant. Maybe the key is in going against the masses and the only way to do so is to ask a new question – one that allows you to think from completely new, and opposite, perspective than you have up until now.

So let me ask you, what questions are you asking yourself that is shifting the paradigm in your business and allowing you to grow?