“Everything we know has its origins in questions. Questions, we might say, are the principal intellectual instruments available to human beings.”
― Neil Postman

“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”
― Voltaire

A good FAQ page lets your customers or users find all the answers they need in one place. It lets you spend your time on more important matters than answering the same question repeatedly.

A personal FAQ list is a bit different. It’s a list is made up of the questions that you should ask yourself “frequently” to stay on track and keep growing. It helps you quickly push past obstacles and spend your time on actions.

Unlike a traditional FAQ, it doesn’t include the answers, because the answers change constantly. The key is to ask yourself empowering questions.

The questions and categories change over time. You should add, modify, or remove questions based on new insight and experience.

Here are some example categories and questions to get you started:

Start my day.

• What am I grateful for?
• What are my high-level goals?
• What can I do for someone else today?
• What limiting beliefs are holding me back?
• What would I do right now if I could do anything?
• What will it take to achieve what I want?
• What are my three top priorities for today?

End my day.

• What am I grateful for?
• What happened today?
• How did I fail?
• How can I do better tomorrow?

I feel overwhelmed.

• What are my three most significant challenges?
• What can I eliminate to add time and energy?
• Who can I ask for help?
• Why is this hard?

Make a decision.

• Why am I doing this?
• Should I do this?
• Will this make my life better?
• Will this bring me closer to the people I care for?
• Should I do something else?

I’m afraid to act.

• What’s the worst that could happen?
• How would I deal with that?
• Will I care about this in 20 years?

Solve a problem.

• What problem am I trying to solve?
• Has anyone else ever solved this problem?
• What did they do?
• How can I break this problem down into smaller steps?

Determine a course of action.

• How can I uniquely contribute?
• How can I add the most value?
• How can I help the team win?
• Where are my skills and talents needed most?

The project is complete or the event is over.

• What did I expect to happen?
• What actually happened?
• Why did it happen?
• How can I improve the process?

Something bad happened.

• Is this a problem or a challenge?
• What actions are immediately necessary?
• How can I take ownership?
• How can I take care of my family, friends, or team?
• How can this situation help me grow?
• What will I do to prevent this in the future?

I’m frustrated or depressed.

• Is my ego getting in the way?
• How can I adjust my state to improve my mood?
• How can I improve my life right now?
• How can I add some variety to my routine?