The Signal · Workshop 03 · Foundation
Ask Better Than 'How Was Your Day?'
Five steps. About 25 minutes. Up to 7 stars. The constellation you're building is called First Probe.
The Signal · Workshop 03 · Foundation
Five steps. About 25 minutes. Up to 7 stars. The constellation you're building is called First Probe.
"How was your day?" gets you "fine." Better questions get you what's actually going on.
A real question is one the other person has to think about. "How was your day?" is a script — the answer is also a script. "What was the hardest moment of your day?" is a question — it requires thinking. The answer is real.
The pattern: specific over general, present over past, sensory over abstract. "What did the cafeteria smell like today?" beats "how was lunch?" because it gives the other person something to actually grab onto.
By the end of this workshop you'll have written 5 better questions you can actually use.
That's the warm-up. When you've actually read it — not skimmed — tap below.
Pick the ones that would get a real answer.
Click a pattern, then an example.
Pick 5 questions you'd ask different people in your life. Make them real — specific, present, sensory, open. Note who you'd ask each one.
Stuck? Try: 1 (for parent): What's a decision you're putting off? 2 (for sibling): What's the funniest thing that happened today? 3 (for friend): What's something you've been thinking about and haven't told anyone? 4 (for grandparent): What's the most useful thing you ever learned the hard way? 5 (for teacher): What part of teaching this class surprises you most?
Name it. (You don't have to ask it — just name it.)