"A change of perspective is worth 50 IQ points" 14 questions I use for changing perspectives:
High Agency Question: • If you had to ask someone to break into a 3rd world prison, who would it be? This will help you identify your high agency and relentlessly resourceful friends.
Clear Thinking Question: • If your 90-year-old self took over your body right now, what would they think & do? Most day-to-day nonsense fades away upon answering this.
New Ideas Question: • Where is the luggage with wheels? A man walked on the moon before someone came up with the idea of putting wheels on luggage The greatest minds carried their luggage until the 1980s and didn't even question it. What is the luggage with wheels in 2022?
Steelman Question: • What is the best argument you’ve heard against this perspective? Whenever you hear someone ranting about a topic, ask them this question. They will usually stumble. The rare few that have a clear answer are worth continuing the conversation with.
False Beliefs Question: • We question all our beliefs, except for the ones that we really believe in, and those we never think to question. What is the false belief you've never questioned? This one is like a liver punch.
Luck Question: • What action is going to bring about the most luck? Pick the one that feels like it will produce the most luck in the future I used this question to go for drinks with a stranger rather than watch Netflix The highest ROI decision I've made in hindsight
Objective Personality Traits Question: • If you had to invest in a friend and short a friend, who would you pick and why? We find it difficult to analyze ourselves -- but easy to analyze other people This will give you an objective list of personality traits to pursue & avoid
Thiel Question: • How can you achieve your 10-year goal in 6 months? You've just sped up your timeline by 20x - so it forces you to think differently.
Creative Marketing Question: • If we had to acquire customers with $0, how would we do it? This will force your marketing team to get creative. It doesn't mean you have to literally do this, but it's a useful exercise to think through.
Emotionless AI Question: • What would Stockfish do in this situation? Stockfish is the AI chess engine that can beat any human If you could imagine a Stockfish for real life, what would it do in your situation now? This helps remove emotion/identity around decision making
Meeting Someone Ahead Of You Question: • What should I be asking you? Rather than asking tonne of questions, ask them with all the knowledge of the topic that they have -- what questions should you be asking them. You don't want to ask Einstein about his morning routine.
Simplification Question: • What if I could only subtract to solve problems? This will flip your problem-solving brain on its head.
Word of Group Chat Question: • Would a potential customer put our marketing campaign in their group chat? What language would they use? If you can't answer this question, keep changing the strategy until you can clearly answer it.
Life Quality Question: • How many days in the last 365 days do I remember? You'll be shocked at how few days this is. And notice all the underlying mechanics of the days you remember: New experiences, activities, breaks from routine etc
One of my favourite Oasis lyrics: “Questions are the answers you might need” There’s something beautiful about someone figuring out the answer to the question Rather than getting it spoon fed to them
Questions also make it hyper personalised to the individual Unlike prescriptive advice 2 people can answer the same question and come up with completely different answers
