Strands of Genius: The Best Questions

Jun 01, 2021

WORKING ON | recovery!

LOOKING AHEAD
May 10 - June 4: Nashville, TN
June 4-9: Beersheba Springs, TN
June 15-30: Wingdale, NY (Rosie)
July 1-8: Nashville, TN
July 10-August 10: TBD

:: WHAT’S NEW & WEEKLY GRATITUDE ::

Damn, that post-vaccine life is exhausting! It feels great to be social, but it is physically demanding to be out and about. Anyone else feeling out of practice?

Over the weekend, we rallied, and we celebrated Marion, my (Rosie) little sister getting married to her longtime partner Nate, the day before my birthday! We gained an incredibly awesome new sister-in-law, who we really enjoyed getting to know over the past week. And it was an honor to add “wedding officiant” and “wedding florist” to my list of titles. Truly, I had so much fun, and couldn’t be more thankful that Marion and Nate found each other. (Awwwww.)

This week, we’re especially thankful for:

Marion & Nate, Jodi & Judy, Ashley & Laine, peonies, 21C Hotels, Frank & Mel, Lauren, John & Matthew, Scott & Teresa, Michelle, Cat, Calypso Cafe, D’Andrews Bakery, and all of the wedding crew.

S C H O O L O F S T O L E N G E N I U S >> H I G H L I G H T S

//SOSG | Community Meet Up//

Starts (Weds) June 2, 2021 at 12:00 PM EDT

An AMA with Faris & Rosie
Now’s your chance to ask them anything, with Ashley and Caitlin of the Genius Steals team will be facilitating the conversation. A couple ground rules:
No Yes or No questions
Bring your toughest work challenges
Curiosities on their nomadic lifestyle
What incoming trends are on their radar

Enroll at http://schoolofstolengeni.us

Practicing Strategy in a Changing World.

Yes, sure, a lot of the fundamental strategy skills will be as important as ever. If not more! But how do you practice your strategy craft in a changing world? That's the topic for this year's Group Think Festival. Join them, and some top practitioners in the field, on June 3rd, 8am–8pm BST. Details here. Congrats to Ellie, who won the Strands of Genius ticket giveaway!

:: THE LINKS ARE NOT HAPPENING THIS WEEK::

Because of our extended celebrations and time with family, the newsletter looks a little different today. Instead of the typical links and discussion, I’m sharing a list of questions I’ve compiled from friends and strangers all over the world.

It lives on my phone in a note called “The BEST Questions” and I reference it for cab rides, for icebreakers, for dinner parties, and even just for walks with Faris. I hope that this list brings you as many great conversations as it has for me.

Almost all of these questions can be followed up with a “Why?” or “Tell me more.” These all offer chances to practice your active listening, because the art of listening is just as important as the art of asking questions.

“Good listeners are no less rare or important than good communicators. Here, too, an unusual degree of confidence is the key — a capacity not to be thrown off course by, or buckle under the weight of, information that may deeply challenge certain settled assumptions.
Good listeners are unfussy about the chaos which others may for a time create in their minds; they’ve been there before and know that everything can eventually be set back in its place.” - Alain de Botton

If I didn’t include your favorite question, I’d love to hear it. What’s your go-to question, to get the conversation going?

TOPICS.

Pick broad topics and let people debate.

Art. What is art? What *isn’t* art?
Courage. What does courageous mean? Is there ever an easy time to be courageous or brave?
Justice. Do punishment and justice have to be linked? How does the justice system work in your culture? Do you think it works?
Apologies. What constitutes a real apology? Would you want t hear one if it wasn’t intended?
Work life balance. Can it exist?
Guilty Pleasures. Why should we feel guilty about enjoying something? What do people typically use it to refer to?
Is a hot dog a sandwich? What is a sandwich?
Cancel culture. Does it help? Why does it exist?
Water. Is water wet? Why or why not?
Fame. What does it mean today? Would you want it? In what way?
Jokes. What, if anything, is too serious to joke about? Where is your line, and why?

THE PAST

When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?
What’s your first memory?
What’s your most vivid memory as a child?
What’s your most vivid memory of a historical event as a child?
What’s the dumbest thing you made your parents buy for you growing up?
What person has had the biggest influence on your life?
What event from your past do you think has had an outsized influence on how you live your life?
How would you describe yourself as a teenager?
What’s the sneakiest thing you remember doing as a kid?
What did you hide from your parents when you were younger?
A time machine will take you back to some moment in your past for one hour. What would you want to go relive?
What are you exceptionally grateful for?
What do you miss from your childhood?
What was your spirit animal as a child? What about now?
What’s something you did that got you in trouble as a child?
If you could go back in time to witness a historical event with your safety guaranteed, what would it be?
What do you wish you had majored in, in college? (Whether the degree is real or imaginary)
What is something you’ve done in the past that you don’t need to do again?
What event from your past
Are there any people who you don’t keep in touch with, but who you think about regularly? Why? What brings them to your mind?
What’s the worst prediction/bet you ever made?
What was a former interest/hobby/passion that no longer interests you know? What happened?

THE FUTURE/HYPOTHETICAL

What’s your dream of dreams?
What would constitute your best day ever?
What does freedom mean to you?
What are you most excited about right now?
If you knew you were eating your last meal, what would you want to eat?
If you could speak all languages fluently, or play all instruments with ease, which would you pick?
If you were to write a book, what do you think it'd be about?
If you and your pet could understand each other for two and a half minutes, what would you want to say?
If you had to write a book about an individual, who would it be?
What worries you the most about the future?
What excites you the most about the future?
What are you most looking forward to, right now?
If you had a billboard in Times Square for a day, what would you use it to say? Why?
If you had a day you could do anything you wanted, what would you do and why? (And how often do you get to do that in your life currently?)
If you could own any piece of art in the world, what piece would you pick, and why? Does this change if you can’t sell the piece of art in the hypothetical?
If you were given a million dollars right now, but you had to pack up and move to a different country for at least 3 years, would you do it? Where would you move?
If you were put into witness protection, where would you live and what would be your new backstory? Why?
If you didn’t have to sleep, how would you spend the extra hours in a day?
If you could do something that you don’t currently do because it’s not good for you (either health, safety, or otherwise), but you could do it and know for a fact that you won’t have any repercussions, what would it be?

FAMILY & FRIENDS

What are your thoughts on legacy? What does leaving a legacy mean to you?
Who is your best friend and why? What qualities do you look for in a friend?
How would your friends describe you? How does that differ from how you’d describe yourself?
Who would like to have as your dinner guest, alive or dead?
Which celebrity do you think would most like to want to be YOUR friend?
How would your parents friends describe them? How is that different from how you’d describe them?
What is something that no one knows about you?
If someone were visiting your hometown, what places would you recommend?
What was the best meal your mom or dad made growing up? When was the last time you made it yourself?
How did you get your name? Does anyone else in your family share it?

LOVE

- PARTNER

Tell me about how you and your partner first met.
What qualities or characteristics to you love about your partner?
What makes them a good partner for you?
(And what makes you a good partner for them?)
What do you admire about how your partner lives their life?
How do you and your partner handle tough situations together?
What are you most proud of about your relationship?
What do you think is worth celebrating with regards to your relationship?
How do you make time for each other?
Do you have any nicknames/jokes/funny stories you want to share?
What are your favorite things to do together?
When did you know that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with your partner?
What’s a side of your partner that others may not see?
Tell me about a treasured memory that you have together.

- EITHER

How’s your love life? Why do you say that?
Do you believe in monogamous relationships? Why or why not?
Do you believe in polyamorous relationships? Why or why not?
More generally, what do you think are key elements to a good relationship?
What is your love language?
Tell me about your first kiss.
Tell me about the first time you said I love you.
Who are your relationship role models?

- SINGLE

What do you most enjoy about being single?
What is something that you believe you must have in a partner?
What’s something that you wouldn’t tell someone on a first date, but you think is crucial to understanding who you are?

LIFE EXPERIENCE

What’s the most recent thing you’ve learned?
What’s your weirdest or most irrational fear?
Have you said anything for the first time today? If not, when was the last time you did?
What practices or rituals are a part of your daily life?
What’s the first R-rated movie you saw? How old were you?
What’s the most common misperception people have about you?
Who has been your best mentor in life?
When are you most aware you’re alive?
Where/when have you had the biggest impact on someone’s life?
How would you spend your life if you didn’t need to work for money?
What’s something that made you smile today? Describe what happened.

INTERESTS & HOBBIES

If you could pick up one talent or skill simply by plugging into the matrix — but it would cost you all of your life savings (whatever you have, right this moment) — would you do it? And if so, what would the talent/skill be?
If you were stranded on a deserted island and has access to all the meat you want but could only choose 5 vegetables and 5 herbs (garlic can count as an herb), what would you choose?
How many hours a night do you sleep? Do you feel satisfied with your sleep schedule?
What brings you joy?
What are you passionate about?
What do you like to do with your spare time?
What do you dislike that everyone else likes?
Or what do you like that no one else likes?
What are your five favorite songs?
What was the first/last/best concert you saw?
What are your five favorite movies?
What was the first/last/best concert movie you saw?
Are you as interesting as you look?
What board game do you wish we had right now?
What’s your best ever celebrity sighting?
If you could sing like one famous vocalist, alive or dead, who would it be?
What is your favorite body of water? Where is it located, and why is it your favorite?
If you were starting a restaurant, and were in charge of *making* a signature dish, what would you pick and why?
If you were starting a restaurant, and could hire a chef, what signature dish would you want the chef to make? Why?
What are your comfort food cravings?
What was your least favorite dish that your parents forced you to eat growing up?
If you could invent a new ice cream flavor — without having to do the work, it was guaranteed to taste delicious — what flavor would you have made?
What is your favorite holiday? Why?

JOB

If you were suddenly blackballed from your industry, what career would you explore and why?
What motivates you at work?
If you had to tell me what you do, without using your title or company name, how would you describe your job?
What is your super power?
When do you do your best work? Why? (Are you a night owl or a morning person?)

FUNNY

What’s something you learned very late in life? What had you assumed prior?
Is there a correct way to install toilet paper rolls?
Which fictional character (from a movie or a book) do you wish was your best friend in real life?
Tell me two truths and a lie about yourself, and let me guess which is which.
What line from a popular song is different than what you originally thought?
If you were a Disney character, who would you be?
Do you (specifically) wash your legs in the shower?
Are fish wet when they are in water?
If you had to wrestle in some kind of food that wasn’t jello, what would it be?
Imagine a bag of dicks. What does the bag o dicks look like? What shape is the bag? Is it see through? Opaque? What do the dicks look like?
For a more PG version, pick another body part or an animal. Imagine a bag of chickens…
What do you like that most people don’t?
What don’t you like that most people do?

TRAVEL

What’s the single most important thing you’ve learned from your travels that you try to incorporate into your daily life?
What’s the best vacation you’ve been on, and why?
What was your worst travel experience? What made it so tough?
What motivates you to travel?
Do you live in the same city you were born in? If not, what motivated you to leave? If so, what motivated you to stay?
If you were given a relocation budget to move anywhere for a year EXCEPT within your own country, where would you move?
What’s the ONE place you want to travel to most?
What’s the most adventurous dish that you’ve eaten?
If you could live in the setting of any book or movie, what would you pick?

TOUGH

Tell me something about yourself that I wouldn’t know by looking at you.
What question do you wish people would ask you?
What are you avoiding?
What was the first time you ever broke the law?
What do you want on your tombstone? How would you like to be remembered?
What makes you resentful?
When was the last time you were really, truly, angry?
When was the last time you cried?
What would your fatal flaw be?
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
What is something about yourself that you didn’t know last year that you know now and can’t imagine your life without knowing it because it feels so true and part of your being?
If you knew you were dying in your sleep, what would you do the night before?
What grudge should you probably just go ahead and let go?
What will you do differently this year?
What has kept you from doing what you want to do?
What song would you want to be played at your funeral?
What’s the most expensive habit that you have? Do you want to give it up or are you fine with keeping it?
If you were able to live to the age of 90 and keep either the mind or the body of a 30 year old for the last 60 years of your life, what would you pick and why?
Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?
If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret leaving unsaid? (And, why has it gone unsaid?)
Of all the people in your family, whose death would you find most disturbing? Why?
Your house catches fire. You and your family/pets will be safe, and you have the opportunity to grab any one item before everything goes up in flames. What do you retrieve and why?

Strands of Genius is currently read by 12,000 subscribers. Support us by sponsoring an issue, becoming a member of The School of Stolen Genius, or encouraging friends or colleagues to subscribe.

:: AND NOW… A WEDDING PICTURE FROM THE WEEKEND, BECAUSE C’MON!! ::

CONGRATS MARION & NATE, WE LOVE Y’ALL!!!

If we can ever be of help to you, even outside of a formal engagement, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

rockON,
faris & rosie & ashley | your friends over at geniussteals.co

@faris is always tweeting
@rosieyakob hangs out on instagram
@ashley also writes for deaf, tattooed & employed

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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.

Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based out of Washington, our company is registered in Tennessee, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.

Hit reply and let’s talk about how we might be able to work together :)

Strands of Genius