Today’s Mandala Message: It’s About Connecting
This week I’m working through Principle #48 from Jack Canfield’s “The Success Principles” entitled “Be Hear Now”. I set my intention today to ponder making stronger connections with others. One way I (we) can do that is, when conversing with others, ask open-ended questions, ones that allow the other person who’s answering to go into more detail and thus give us (the listener) more options for further questions…and potential for a deeper connection.
From an article posted on VeryWellMind.com about asking questions, they state: “Asking “yes or no” questions often produce dead-end answers. This isn’t helpful during active listening as it keeps the conversation from flowing. It also makes it difficult to truly listen to the other person because there isn’t much you can gain from a short, non-descriptive response. Instead, ask open-ended questions to show that you are interested in the conversation and the other person.”
In a related VeryWellMind.com article about open-ended questions they state: “Open-ended questions are ones that allow you to provide whatever amount of detail you want, rather than simply answering “yes” or “no.” Open-ended questions encourage you to share relevant material about your life, your way of thinking, and your beliefs.”
For the most part I like to ask open-ended questions mainly because I learn more about the person or the story they’re telling. For instance if I ask a friend “did you go to the library today?”, they could end the conversation just by answering yes or no. Instead if I ask “What happened when you went to the library today?”, whether they went or not, they would have to provide more information than just a simple yes or no.
A good mindfulness practice would be to notice what type of questions you generally ask when conversing with others: open or yes/no questions.
So how about you? When talking with others, do you generally ask yes/no questions? Or do you ask open-ended questions? If you generally ask yes/no type questions, are you willing to try some open-ended questions to see if you make a better connection with the person who’s answering?
“The greatest compliment
— Henry David Thoreau
that was ever paid me
was when someone asked me
what I thought,
and attended to my answer.”
Blessings,
Maureen
The Mandala Lady
All Things Mandalas
An Invitation
I invite you to color along with me this year as part of what I’m calling “The Year of Self-Exploration and Expansion” with all of my “Mandalas of the ___” (day, week, month, year). If you’re interested in more of a self-exploration approach to coloring, check out my “Coloring Mandalas as Meditation”. You can download this mandala at MandalaoftheWeek.com.
Mandala of the Day 