Five Essential Questions to Ask Yourself Daily

I adore questions. Actually, I think I’m obsessed with questions. This strange love affair has led to tremendous self-discovery. Questions prompt me to dig deep and often unveil beautiful aha! moments. I journal daily and created a book solely devoted to journaling questions.

While flipping through my journal today, I realized that five questions appear over and over again. So I decided to write them on a sticky note and put the note inside my journal cover for easy reference. Now, I am challenging myself to answer these questions daily for 21 days. Up for a challenge? The single requirement: a desire to spend a few minutes each day connecting with your essential self.

The Daily Questions

  1. What am I feeling?
  2. What do I want to start?
  3. What is working? What isn’t working?
  4. What must I release or let go of?
  5. What am I grateful for? What made me smile today?

What question(s) would you add? Do you have a daily journaling ritual?

{image: papaya!}

Related "ripples" you might enjoy:

  1. Love the Questions
  2. Dare to Turn Knowledge into Action
  3. Update: Daily Tips
  4. Pen & Paper: The Power of Questions
  5. Unfiltered Blogging

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 21st, 2010 at 6:51 pm and is filed under Authenticity, Creativity & Inspiration, Goals & Productivity, Personal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

12 Responses to “Five Essential Questions to Ask Yourself Daily”

  1. Cass
    Twitter:
    says:

    What a great challenge. I’ll have to add this to my May to-do’s. I’m a big question person too – I love those If…books and I’ve been known to take a game of 20 questions into the triple digits because I am just SO curious…about other people, about life, about myself.

    Whenever I find myself hitting a wall I ask myself and force a written answer to this question: Are you going in the right direction? Because…most of the time when I’m hitting a wall I’m not going in the right direction at all.

  2. Shang Lee
    Twitter:
    says:

    I think the last question should come first. Just start of with “what am I grateful with right now” gives such a sense of appreciation of what we have now. It also gives a positive platform from which all other actions after that can follow. :) Good questions.
    Shang Lee´s last blog ..The expensive right foot My ComLuv Profile

    • Susan says:

      I usually just meditate first and let my mind go to a peaceful space and then my hand just Flows…~~~ I mean somedays Really flows with thoughts and feelings. I look back later and see my Authentic self that came through at that time and it amazes me sometimes the insight i give myself! If i ask a question it is usually referring to a particular issue I’m dealing with or concentrating on at that time. EX: What am I going to do about …? What can I do to make this better? Lord will you Please help me with…..?

  3. Lee says:

    This is a great challenge Carolyn, I think I will try this out also ;)
    I tend to ask myself – what I want to start? a lot, It’s hard to stay focused if I don’t ask myself that question.

  4. Great post! I am totally convinced staying in a place of gratitude is such a gift to ourselves and I love the idea of talking about what’s working too. So often it seems we focus more on what is not working. Glad I visited today. I will be back. :)
    Clearly Composed´s last blog ..~ 10 Easy Ways to Ruin Your Weekend My ComLuv Profile

  5. Lianne
    Twitter:
    says:

    These are great questions to ask yourself every day! Maybe I will join you!

  6. Britt Bravo
    Twitter:
    says:

    I like to ask myself, “What would my ideal day look like?” I either write out the description, or list the elements of what would make it ideal.
    Britt Bravo´s last blog ..Ask Me Anything: Help Me Test Formspring My ComLuv Profile

  7. Great questions to ask yourself and to lead you forward or not.
    Melissa Allam´s last blog ..Weekend Delights My ComLuv Profile

  8. [...] 1, 2010 by inneedofpeace Today I started my morning pages asking that question. Motivated by Carolyn Rubenstein’s Ripple Effect Blog, I started working with five questions in writing out my morning pages. The Daily [...]

  9. Feithline says:

    I love the personal wisdom that asking these questions will provide me with on a regular basis. I forget to ask myself the important questions all the time, so your idea to put it on a post-it in your journal? Genius. Thank you. :)
    Feithline´s last blog ..So. Not. Ugly My ComLuv Profile

  10. Dani says:

    I love this. I’ve put this on the front of my journal, to spur me to write when I’m feeling blocked. Thanks.
    Dani´s last blog ..Enjoy An Even Better View My ComLuv Profile

  11. Sheri A says:

    A question I ask daily, because I am a Christian, is what does God want me to do today to help me help Him? How can I make a difference for the better in somebody else’s life? By making others happy and blessing them, we in turn are blessed.

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