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A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas
In this groundbreaking book, journalist and innovation expert Warren Berger shows that one of the most powerful forces for igniting change in business and in our daily lives is a simple, under-appreciated tool—one that has been available to us since childhood. Questioning—deeply, imaginatively, "beautifully"—can help us identify and solve problems, come up with game-changing ideas, and pursue fresh opportunities. So why are we often reluctant to ask "Why?"
Berger's surprising findings reveal that even though children start out asking hundreds of questions a day, questioning "falls off a cliff" as kids enter school. In an education and business culture devised to reward rote answers over challenging inquiry, questioning isn't encouraged—and, in fact, is sometimes barely tolerated.
And yet, as Berger shows, the most creative, successful people tend to be expert questioners. They've mastered the art of inquiry, raising questions no one else is asking—and finding powerful answers. The author takes us inside red-hot businesses like Google, Netflix, IDEO, and Airbnb to show how questioning is baked into their organizational DNA. He also shares inspiring stories of artists, teachers, entrepreneurs, basement tinkerers, and social activists who changed their lives and the world around them—by starting with a "beautiful question."
Berger explores important questions, such as:
- Why aren't we nurturing kids' natural ability to question—and what can parents and schools do about that?
- Since questioning is a starting point for innovation, how might companies and business leaders begin to encourage and exploit it?
- And most important, how can each of us re-ignite that questioning spark—and use inquiry as a powerful means to rethink and reinvent our lives?
A More Beautiful Question outlines a practical Why / What If / How system of inquiry that can guide you through the process of innovative questioning—helping you find imaginative, powerful answers to your own "beautiful questions."
Berger's surprising findings reveal that even though children start out asking hundreds of questions a day, questioning "falls off a cliff" as kids enter school. In an education and business culture devised to reward rote answers over challenging inquiry, questioning isn't encouraged—and, in fact, is sometimes barely tolerated.
And yet, as Berger shows, the most creative, successful people tend to be expert questioners. They've mastered the art of inquiry, raising questions no one else is asking—and finding powerful answers. The author takes us inside red-hot businesses like Google, Netflix, IDEO, and Airbnb to show how questioning is baked into their organizational DNA. He also shares inspiring stories of artists, teachers, entrepreneurs, basement tinkerers, and social activists who changed their lives and the world around them—by starting with a "beautiful question."
Berger explores important questions, such as:
- Why aren't we nurturing kids' natural ability to question—and what can parents and schools do about that?
- Since questioning is a starting point for innovation, how might companies and business leaders begin to encourage and exploit it?
- And most important, how can each of us re-ignite that questioning spark—and use inquiry as a powerful means to rethink and reinvent our lives?
A More Beautiful Question outlines a practical Why / What If / How system of inquiry that can guide you through the process of innovative questioning—helping you find imaginative, powerful answers to your own "beautiful questions."
272 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
About the author
Warren Berger
23 books184 followersI’m an author and speaker on innovation, creativity, and the power of questioning. I invite fellow curious thinkers to join me in exploring the power of inquiry to spark breakthrough ideas on my questioning site. My latest book is the updated 10th Anniversary edition of A MORE BEAUTIFUL QUESTION, published by Bloomsbury Worldwide, with new chapters on how questioning can help make you a better leader … a clearer thinker … and a more effective communicator, and much more
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 573 reviews
February 29, 2016
I read quite a few of these kinds of books and mostly they are at best only somewhat helpful. This book was far beyond merely helpful, it was inspirational. After listening to this on audio, I am now trying to decide whether to buy it in Kindle or as a hard copy in order to grab the quotes and questions I loved most. The first two chapters were enthralling to me because they centered on education. How can we set our children and students free to ask questions? It is certainly not by presenting education as a way to find the "right" fill-in-the-blank answers. The rest of the book was slower but still inspiring. Some people complain that the book is too anecdotal; I think this is the perfect book for anecdotes.
If you are involved in education, especially classical education, then you are going to want to read this. If you follow Charlotte Mason ideals then you are going to love this book; questions, processing, and synthesis are all here.
We have all heard of gratitude journals, they have almost become trite with over use, but what about starting a question journal? If you need a few questions to get started this book has them.
I will be reading this again and listening to it again, too. Highly recommended!
If you are involved in education, especially classical education, then you are going to want to read this. If you follow Charlotte Mason ideals then you are going to love this book; questions, processing, and synthesis are all here.
We have all heard of gratitude journals, they have almost become trite with over use, but what about starting a question journal? If you need a few questions to get started this book has them.
I will be reading this again and listening to it again, too. Highly recommended!
August 21, 2017
This is one of those books that would have been twice as good if it were half as long. You’d be better off selecting the best posts from the blog that eventually gave rise to the book. Still, I loved the concept, and there is no shortage of interesting examples of the benefits of asking questions.
Children are notorious for their questions. According to one estimate, they ask around 40,000 questions between ages two and five, driving their parents crazy in the process. Then something happens and most of us stop asking questions. We lose our curiosity.
Berger has a few theories as to why. He says our education system values answers more than asking good questions. As we grow up, and become more sensitive to how others perceive us, we stop asking questions for fear that others will think us stupid. And, finally, some stop asking questions because questions challenge authority, and questioning authority can get us in trouble. I’m most interested in the last type of question, the kind that challenges authority and challenges our inherited assumptions. Those who have the least power are also the least likely to question authority; it’s one of the thorniest obstacles in our field of transparency, accountability and governance.
Much of the first half of the book profiles the Right Question Institute, a non-profit based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with a staff of just four that teaches question-asking as a “catalyst for microdemocracy.” It’s the kind of place I’d intern at today if I were a recent college grad. I love the concept of Microdemocracy, that we can act democratically in our everyday lives by simply asking questions of our public officials and institutions. There is something empowering about asking questions, though it requires us to be self-confident enough to be vulnerable about our ignorance. Unfortunately, society rewards the bombastic “experts” that claim to have all the answers.
There is plenty in the book to disagree with. Berger is strangely enamored with Silicon Valley technologists and pundits, though he has a knee-jerk tendency to criticize technology’s effect on inquiry. Sure, having Google and Wikipedia at our fingertips can make us lazy, but they’re also wonderful tools for the inquisitive and can give us the necessary context to ultimately ask better questions. Berger says “experts” don’t ask good questions, yet then he seems to introduce everyone as an expert and can’t help but mention their credentials. His own bio calls him an “innovation expert,” whatever that is. I wish the book featured fewer technologists and more insights from researchers and investigative journalists. And I wish it were slightly more nuanced in distinguishing between different types of questions: those in search of facts, opinions, or the kind that question assumptions. Nitpicking aside, it’s a worthwhile read and a good reminder to regain some of our childlike curiosity.
Children are notorious for their questions. According to one estimate, they ask around 40,000 questions between ages two and five, driving their parents crazy in the process. Then something happens and most of us stop asking questions. We lose our curiosity.
Berger has a few theories as to why. He says our education system values answers more than asking good questions. As we grow up, and become more sensitive to how others perceive us, we stop asking questions for fear that others will think us stupid. And, finally, some stop asking questions because questions challenge authority, and questioning authority can get us in trouble. I’m most interested in the last type of question, the kind that challenges authority and challenges our inherited assumptions. Those who have the least power are also the least likely to question authority; it’s one of the thorniest obstacles in our field of transparency, accountability and governance.
Much of the first half of the book profiles the Right Question Institute, a non-profit based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with a staff of just four that teaches question-asking as a “catalyst for microdemocracy.” It’s the kind of place I’d intern at today if I were a recent college grad. I love the concept of Microdemocracy, that we can act democratically in our everyday lives by simply asking questions of our public officials and institutions. There is something empowering about asking questions, though it requires us to be self-confident enough to be vulnerable about our ignorance. Unfortunately, society rewards the bombastic “experts” that claim to have all the answers.
There is plenty in the book to disagree with. Berger is strangely enamored with Silicon Valley technologists and pundits, though he has a knee-jerk tendency to criticize technology’s effect on inquiry. Sure, having Google and Wikipedia at our fingertips can make us lazy, but they’re also wonderful tools for the inquisitive and can give us the necessary context to ultimately ask better questions. Berger says “experts” don’t ask good questions, yet then he seems to introduce everyone as an expert and can’t help but mention their credentials. His own bio calls him an “innovation expert,” whatever that is. I wish the book featured fewer technologists and more insights from researchers and investigative journalists. And I wish it were slightly more nuanced in distinguishing between different types of questions: those in search of facts, opinions, or the kind that question assumptions. Nitpicking aside, it’s a worthwhile read and a good reminder to regain some of our childlike curiosity.
May 31, 2020
I don't know if Americans just love to fall for stuff like this, but for me, as a European and as a former scientist, this extremely cheap take on the great topic of the Art (or science) to ask questions sounds almost offensive. No methods of proper formulation of questions is presented in the book, the domain of science, where questions are the daily bread, is completely skipped in favor of entrepreneurship examples that sound like advertising.
The use of question asking as a social skill is also skipped over and using it for interfacing with others is suggested only in order to create a product or service in order to, wild guess, make money.
It is a depressing book if you are looking for actionable knowledge and especially if you are turned off by the cheap self-help lit meant to keep the antiquate American Dream alive.
Giving it 2 stars just because the topic would have been an interesting one.
The use of question asking as a social skill is also skipped over and using it for interfacing with others is suggested only in order to create a product or service in order to, wild guess, make money.
It is a depressing book if you are looking for actionable knowledge and especially if you are turned off by the cheap self-help lit meant to keep the antiquate American Dream alive.
Giving it 2 stars just because the topic would have been an interesting one.
May 20, 2014
For the 99.999 Percent
In short, if you want better answers and more innovative solutions, you need to work on your ability to ask better questions and this is the book to help you do just that. If you want to connect and communicate more deeply and productively, then you want to practice the type of master questioning that this book describes.
Very few of us are pursuing our lives with such conviction that there is no room for improvement. Those who are leading such lives do so because they are already master questioners. What these master questioners know for sure is that they have to keep questioning in order to keep forging ahead.
This is why “A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas” by Warren Berger is a book for the 99.999 percent.
Whether you are facing a tough challenge, searching for a new career, looking for a little inspiration, a sense of purpose or just want to shake things up a bit, this book will help you to find the path through the lost art of questioning. If ever there was a book that you need to read to work through problem-solving or change, this is it. Examples in the book span both personal and business questions as well as those wicked problems we all face such as climate change.
What the author noticed when researching “Glimmer: How Design Can Transform Your World” is that the designers and successful innovators he interviewed knew how to ask better questions. This led him to explore the art of asking questions by researching master questioners. The kinds of questions he writes about are those actionable questions that move you forward - from questioning What is, to thinking about What If (What might be or What is possible) to How that might be.
In a world that seems dangerously divided by poor and seriously biased, uni-dimensional communication that leads to a lack of understanding never mind new ideas or resolution, questioning can open doors that would otherwise remain slammed shut.
From AMBQ, Questioning for Life page 203
[Frances] “Peavey believed that by employing the right kinds of questions – open, curious, slightly provocative at times, but never judgmental – one could have a meaningful dialogue with people who are very different from you, culturally, politically, temperamentally. Such questions could slip under and around the barriers between people; they could help identify common ground and shared concerns. And eventually, if the questioning and the discussion went deep enough, they might begin to revolve conflicts and problems.”
This is but a small sample of the wisdom and beauty found in this book.
This is a book that cultivates both thought and action; a balancing act that propels you forward. And the point of engagement is simply questioning.
There is something to learn and to master here that takes you beyond your current doing, knowing and comfort zone.
“A More Beautiful Question” offers concrete tools and examples to help you to become a better questioner. Read it with a question journal to jot down questions, ideas and inspiration as you move through it.
If change is the only constant, then mastery of questioning should be your constant companion.
Whatever your pursuit, the road to all good things and breakthrough ideas is, most certainly, paved with more beautiful questions.
Finally, Warren Berger’s books are easy to read and most definitely thoughtful and inspirational. As an aside, I loved the creative Index of Questions and the Index of Questioners.
In short, if you want better answers and more innovative solutions, you need to work on your ability to ask better questions and this is the book to help you do just that. If you want to connect and communicate more deeply and productively, then you want to practice the type of master questioning that this book describes.
Very few of us are pursuing our lives with such conviction that there is no room for improvement. Those who are leading such lives do so because they are already master questioners. What these master questioners know for sure is that they have to keep questioning in order to keep forging ahead.
This is why “A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas” by Warren Berger is a book for the 99.999 percent.
Whether you are facing a tough challenge, searching for a new career, looking for a little inspiration, a sense of purpose or just want to shake things up a bit, this book will help you to find the path through the lost art of questioning. If ever there was a book that you need to read to work through problem-solving or change, this is it. Examples in the book span both personal and business questions as well as those wicked problems we all face such as climate change.
What the author noticed when researching “Glimmer: How Design Can Transform Your World” is that the designers and successful innovators he interviewed knew how to ask better questions. This led him to explore the art of asking questions by researching master questioners. The kinds of questions he writes about are those actionable questions that move you forward - from questioning What is, to thinking about What If (What might be or What is possible) to How that might be.
In a world that seems dangerously divided by poor and seriously biased, uni-dimensional communication that leads to a lack of understanding never mind new ideas or resolution, questioning can open doors that would otherwise remain slammed shut.
From AMBQ, Questioning for Life page 203
[Frances] “Peavey believed that by employing the right kinds of questions – open, curious, slightly provocative at times, but never judgmental – one could have a meaningful dialogue with people who are very different from you, culturally, politically, temperamentally. Such questions could slip under and around the barriers between people; they could help identify common ground and shared concerns. And eventually, if the questioning and the discussion went deep enough, they might begin to revolve conflicts and problems.”
This is but a small sample of the wisdom and beauty found in this book.
This is a book that cultivates both thought and action; a balancing act that propels you forward. And the point of engagement is simply questioning.
There is something to learn and to master here that takes you beyond your current doing, knowing and comfort zone.
“A More Beautiful Question” offers concrete tools and examples to help you to become a better questioner. Read it with a question journal to jot down questions, ideas and inspiration as you move through it.
If change is the only constant, then mastery of questioning should be your constant companion.
Whatever your pursuit, the road to all good things and breakthrough ideas is, most certainly, paved with more beautiful questions.
Finally, Warren Berger’s books are easy to read and most definitely thoughtful and inspirational. As an aside, I loved the creative Index of Questions and the Index of Questioners.
August 3, 2015
This book didn’t really catch fire with me. Why, as we grow up, we lose the ability to throw out powerful, generative questions is a subject worthy of inquiry. All the more so as this dwindling capacity is very often associated with damaging implications for our personal wellbeing and professional success. This beautiful question does not lead to an equally compelling answer, however. Warren Berger gets lost in a territory that has been thoroughly mapped in decades of studies on innovation, creativity, design thinking and management strategy. The book’s conceptual backbone - the „Why? What if? How?” questioning sequence - is too weak to keep the narrative together. The result is a rather amorphous argument that didn’t offer me any novel insights. The case studies lack distinctiveness. They could have featured in any book on innovation. Berger’s sterile, Harvard Business Review-like prose didn’t cheer me up either. Altogether this book is a missed opportunity. A book on the art of questioning that I recommend without hesitation is Edgar Schein’s ‚Humble Enquiry’.
July 10, 2014
While this is not specifically aimed at educators, a great deal of learning can occur when we direct students to consider questions rather than answers. In education there is usually a right and a wrong answer. If we are preparing learners to succeed in the 'real world' then we need to ensure they know how to ask questions. This book gets you started on considering questions. Instead of giving tests the only measure one's ability to memorize, give tests that allow learners to pose and answer questions. In life we should never stop questioning.
Some consider questioning authority a throwback to those who want to make significant changes. In some cases that's true, but simply because a board of eight members came up with the direction for a new product does not mean it's the right direction.
As noted, this book is the start of considering questioning. We should be questioning our direction and the use of our valuable time throughout our life.
Read this book and come up with some questions of your own.
Some consider questioning authority a throwback to those who want to make significant changes. In some cases that's true, but simply because a board of eight members came up with the direction for a new product does not mean it's the right direction.
As noted, this book is the start of considering questioning. We should be questioning our direction and the use of our valuable time throughout our life.
Read this book and come up with some questions of your own.
February 21, 2016
كتاب جميل يبين ويؤكد على أهمية طرح الأسئلة كمفتاح للمعرفة وإيجاد الأفكار وحل المشاكل. يحاول الكاتب أن يقنن عملية طرح الأسئلة حتى تحفز العقل بشكل كافٍ للوصول إلى الجواب السليم. فطرح السؤال بشكل سليم أهم من إيجاد الجواب للسؤال. فالعديد من الأسئلة لا تضيف الكثير بصبب صياغتها الخاطئة التي تضعها في قالب يقيد الجواب بطريقة أو بأخرى. يميز الكتاب سرده للعديد والعديد من القصص الواقعية لمن تبنوا فكرة طرح الأسئلة لخدمة عملهم مهما كانت أهدافهم أو مجالاتهم مع التركيز بشكل كبير على مجال الأعمال التجارية ثم المجالات التعليمية. هذه الميزة للكتاب هي أيضاً إحدى عيوبه! فسرد القصص لتعزيز الأفكار وتكرارها واحدة بعد الأخرى تشعرني بأن الكاتب يتكلف إيجاد الأمثلة التي تخدم هدفه أو قد يكون حرفها بطريقة أو بأخرى. فهو يذكر مثلاً أن الفضل لنجاح شركة ما هو طرح السؤال الفلاني، بينما بإمكاني كمنتقد أن أخالفه لأن ما وصلت إليه الشركة كان نتاجا لجهود حثيثة. من أبسطها طرح السؤال الذي ذكره في إحدى اجتمامعات العمل، والكاتب قد يكون اختصر النجاح كله في طرح هذا السؤال! هذا بالطبع لا يقلل من أهمية ما ذكر الكاتب لكنه بالتأكيد ليس مصنعا لأطباق الذهب. وإنما هو كالبوصلة يحدد الاتجاه الصحيح وبعد ذلك علينا المسير وتفقد الطريق بين حين وآخر بطرح الأسئلة تلو الأخرى معتنين بالقواعد التي طرحها في الكتاب. كتاب جم��ل أنصح به. سمعت الكتاب منطوقاً لكن أعتقد أن قراءته ستكون أفضل بكثير. إذا أردت قراءته فستختصر على نفسك الوقت وتحدد وتقتبس من الكتاب ما يحلو لك.
June 29, 2019
4.5 stars
A useful and readable review of some of the powers and approaches in exploratory questioning.
A useful and readable review of some of the powers and approaches in exploratory questioning.
February 1, 2015
Why Question in the First Place?
Time is a most precious finite resource. Most people (in business) are always busy. Business leaders are always anxious to act and do. But they forget to question just if what they are doing is the right thing. In A More Beautiful Question Warren Berger argues that we should take more time to think and ask questions.
Berger argues for a very specific type of questions to ask: Questions that are ambitious yet actionable and that can change the way we perceive or think about something. These questions should be hard (and interesting) to answer, but easy enough that you can still answer them. In short, you should start asking beautiful questions.
With beautiful questions you can achieve a many great things. In scientific discovery it’s questions that lead to discoveries. Questions can tackle your assumptions and prejudices. And questions can help you better invest your time in useful activities.
The Power of Questions
One meta-quality of questions is that they allow you to think about what you don’t know. This is how innovation is driven, asking small incremental questions that lead to ever newer prototypes. Berger condenses the link between questions and actions as follows: Q (question) + A (action) = I (innovation). In observing these innovators he noticed three types of questions: why, what if, how. More on this later. First, why aren’t we asking more questions?
In an amazing TED Talk by Ken Robinson (watched 31 million times), he speaks about how schools kill creativity. Schools rate kids on set criteria (sometimes measuring a fish on it’s ability to climb a tree) and frankly prepare them for a world that is long gone. When kids go to school the amount of questions they ask drops radically. Kids are taught to memorize lists, not think critically.
Berger agrees and states that what schools are for is to prepare students to be productive citizens in the twenty-first century. “This requires self-learners, who are creative and resourceful, who can adjust and adapt to constant change.” Luckily some schools do adhere to the questions etiquette and from Montessori schools the likes of Larry Page (Google) and Marissa Mayer (Yahoo!) have risen to greatness. Therefore we should increase the amount of questions we ask and at the same time learn to ask the right kinds of questions.
Beautiful questions can be divided into three parts: why, what if, how.
Why: stepping back, stop doing and stop knowing*
What if: you don’t do that, combine A and X
How: will it work, just do it
From question to execution these three types of questions can help you better execute your plans, focus your actions and improve your results. Now let’s look at how you can use beautiful questions in business and life.
Questioning in Business
The legendary business guru Peter Drucker understood that his job wasn’t to serve up answer. He argued that he had to “be ignorant and ask a few questions“. Questioning in business works best to see things from a different angle, challenge your own assumptions, and reframe old problems. Here are three examples of businesses that use beautiful questions:
Google: every Friday all employees (from each level) can ask questions to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. In a reddit-like style of up- and downvoting the most interesting questions get an immediate answer.
3M: all employees can take 10% of their working time to answer questions they would like to explore.
Panera Bread: what does the world need most … that we are uniquely able to provide? (transforming a company into a cause)
Questioning for Life
“What is your sentence?” This is what congresswoman Clare Booth asked John F. Kennedy in the beginning of his career. She believed that great people should be summarized (and remembered by) something that fits onto one sentence. One example would be “He raised four kids who became happy, healthy adults”. What would your sentence be?
Another way of putting the question is: Why are you climbing the mountain? What is it you are fighting for? What if you just gave it a shot? What if you couldn't fail? How would you end up? How would you feel?
I can't answer the questions for you. But I can ask you to use the power of inquiry to examine your life, to question your motivation, and to use questions for the greater good.
“The wise man doesn’t give the right answer, he poses the right questions.” – Claude Levi-Strauss
The Question: Is it worth the read? (yes)
After our first few years on this world we stop questioning. We ‘go with the flow’ and become boring grey sheep. Sometimes it only takes a question to become the shepherd. In A More Beautiful Question you will be prompted to start asking questions. So what if you go ahead and read it!
Time is a most precious finite resource. Most people (in business) are always busy. Business leaders are always anxious to act and do. But they forget to question just if what they are doing is the right thing. In A More Beautiful Question Warren Berger argues that we should take more time to think and ask questions.
Berger argues for a very specific type of questions to ask: Questions that are ambitious yet actionable and that can change the way we perceive or think about something. These questions should be hard (and interesting) to answer, but easy enough that you can still answer them. In short, you should start asking beautiful questions.
With beautiful questions you can achieve a many great things. In scientific discovery it’s questions that lead to discoveries. Questions can tackle your assumptions and prejudices. And questions can help you better invest your time in useful activities.
The Power of Questions
One meta-quality of questions is that they allow you to think about what you don’t know. This is how innovation is driven, asking small incremental questions that lead to ever newer prototypes. Berger condenses the link between questions and actions as follows: Q (question) + A (action) = I (innovation). In observing these innovators he noticed three types of questions: why, what if, how. More on this later. First, why aren’t we asking more questions?
In an amazing TED Talk by Ken Robinson (watched 31 million times), he speaks about how schools kill creativity. Schools rate kids on set criteria (sometimes measuring a fish on it’s ability to climb a tree) and frankly prepare them for a world that is long gone. When kids go to school the amount of questions they ask drops radically. Kids are taught to memorize lists, not think critically.
Berger agrees and states that what schools are for is to prepare students to be productive citizens in the twenty-first century. “This requires self-learners, who are creative and resourceful, who can adjust and adapt to constant change.” Luckily some schools do adhere to the questions etiquette and from Montessori schools the likes of Larry Page (Google) and Marissa Mayer (Yahoo!) have risen to greatness. Therefore we should increase the amount of questions we ask and at the same time learn to ask the right kinds of questions.
Beautiful questions can be divided into three parts: why, what if, how.
Why: stepping back, stop doing and stop knowing*
What if: you don’t do that, combine A and X
How: will it work, just do it
From question to execution these three types of questions can help you better execute your plans, focus your actions and improve your results. Now let’s look at how you can use beautiful questions in business and life.
Questioning in Business
The legendary business guru Peter Drucker understood that his job wasn’t to serve up answer. He argued that he had to “be ignorant and ask a few questions“. Questioning in business works best to see things from a different angle, challenge your own assumptions, and reframe old problems. Here are three examples of businesses that use beautiful questions:
Google: every Friday all employees (from each level) can ask questions to Larry Page and Sergey Brin. In a reddit-like style of up- and downvoting the most interesting questions get an immediate answer.
3M: all employees can take 10% of their working time to answer questions they would like to explore.
Panera Bread: what does the world need most … that we are uniquely able to provide? (transforming a company into a cause)
Questioning for Life
“What is your sentence?” This is what congresswoman Clare Booth asked John F. Kennedy in the beginning of his career. She believed that great people should be summarized (and remembered by) something that fits onto one sentence. One example would be “He raised four kids who became happy, healthy adults”. What would your sentence be?
Another way of putting the question is: Why are you climbing the mountain? What is it you are fighting for? What if you just gave it a shot? What if you couldn't fail? How would you end up? How would you feel?
I can't answer the questions for you. But I can ask you to use the power of inquiry to examine your life, to question your motivation, and to use questions for the greater good.
“The wise man doesn’t give the right answer, he poses the right questions.” – Claude Levi-Strauss
The Question: Is it worth the read? (yes)
After our first few years on this world we stop questioning. We ‘go with the flow’ and become boring grey sheep. Sometimes it only takes a question to become the shepherd. In A More Beautiful Question you will be prompted to start asking questions. So what if you go ahead and read it!
April 4, 2014
A comforting read. A good reminder that you don't necessarily need the answers, as long as you're asking the right questions.
September 18, 2022
Loved loved loved this book. Such a valuable concept, questioning. But not only asking questions, but asking meaningful questions. Even if it means finding out you know much less than you thought you did ... or that what you "knew" was wrong.
Best way to grow in life is to ask questions. And this book will help you figure out how.
Best way to grow in life is to ask questions. And this book will help you figure out how.
July 18, 2020
" أن تكون راغبا في التساؤل هو شيء ، وأن تتساءل بطريقة جيدة وفعالة هو شيء أخر مختلف تماماً "
بدأ هذا الكتاب والذي يتمحور حول الأسئلة كموقع إلكتروني بعدها تطورت الفكرة وقام الصحفي والكاتب "وارين بيرغر" بطلب المساعدة من متطوعين وأصدر هذا الكتاب وأوضح في المقدمة
"أن هذا الكتاب ليس عبارة عن أسئلة فلسفية أو روحانية كبرى –لماذا نحن هنا؟كيف يمكن للمرء أن يعرف الخير ؟ هل هناك حياة بعد الموت –جميع تلك الأسئلة التي تثير جدلا محموما لا نهاية له، وأنا لست مؤهلا تماما لمناقشة تلك الأسئلة ، وهي ليست مناسبة لتكون ضمن القائمة التي يمكنني أن أطلق عليها لقب أسئلة علمية ... يكون التركيز هنا على الأسئلة التي يمكن اتخاذ إجراء بشأنها ،أسئلة يمكن أن تقود إلى نتائج ملموسة وإلى تغيير ... يهتم هذا الكتاب بقدر أكبر أسئلة لا يستطيع غوغل أن يتوقعها بسهولة أو أن يجيب عنها إجابة صحيحة-أسئلة تتطلب نوعا أخر من البحث"
يمجد الكاتب الأسئلة كثيرا فالكتاب دعوة للتساؤل وخص معظم الكتاب عن أهمية ذلك في عالم الأعمال والابتكار .
وارين بيرغر بحكم أنه صحفي على اتصال دائم مع المبتكرين المبدعين وصناع التغيير جعله يرى الروابط والقواسم المشتركة بينهم وهي إنهم مميزين جدا في طرح الأسئلة .
ويشير عبر ابحاث اشار إليها من علماء الأعصاب والطب بأن الأطفال كثيري الأسئلة وكلما كبروا تنخفض بشكل كبير .
ويرى أن العلماء كانوا مناصرين للتساؤل كآينشتاين وستيف جوبز
ويقول ستيوارت فايرستاين" أن أحد العوامل الرئيسية في الاكتشافات العلمية يكمن في رغبة العلماء في تقبل الجهل واستخدام الأسئلة كوسيلة للإبحار عبره نحو اكتشافات جديدة"
وكان لديه الكثير من اللقاءات وذكر نماذج عن نجاحات المدارس القائمة على الأسئلة والقائمة على الاستقصاء والأسلوب التعلم السقراطي كمدارس ديبورا ماير ومن مبادئها "أن الطلاب ينبغي أن يطوروا عادة التعلم والأسئلة ، وأنه من غير الممكن تغذيتهم بالمعرفة قسراً"
نصيحة جورج كارلين للآباء والأمهات "لا تقوموا بتعليم أبنائكم القر��ءة فقط ، علموهم أن يضعوا ما يقرأوه موضع تساؤل ، علموهم أن يضعوا كل شيء موضع تساؤل "
ويرى أن "لوز سانتانا" من خلال تجربتها عرفت( أن أولئك الذين لا يعرفون يطرحون الأسئلة المناسبة يكونون عرضة لأن يحرموا مما قد يكونون في حاجة إليه ،أو يكون من حقهم الحصول عليه)
و سانتانا و روثستاين من قاما بتشكيل المنظمة الغير ربحية( معهد السؤال المناسب) والتي ذكرها الكاتب في العديد من المواضع والمعهد متخصص في تعليم الطلاب معالجة المشكلة من خلال توليد أسئلة .
وردد أن هناك تسلسل يمكن التعرف عليه في الكثير من قصص الإبتكار التي شكلت اختراقا
وهو :
لماذا ؟
ماذا لو ؟
كيف ؟
وذكر ذلك في قصص ريد هيستينغز مؤسس Netflix و فيليبس مبتكر القدم الاصطناعية ومؤسسي airbnb .
بدأ هذا الكتاب والذي يتمحور حول الأسئلة كموقع إلكتروني بعدها تطورت الفكرة وقام الصحفي والكاتب "وارين بيرغر" بطلب المساعدة من متطوعين وأصدر هذا الكتاب وأوضح في المقدمة
"أن هذا الكتاب ليس عبارة عن أسئلة فلسفية أو روحانية كبرى –لماذا نحن هنا؟كيف يمكن للمرء أن يعرف الخير ؟ هل هناك حياة بعد الموت –جميع تلك الأسئلة التي تثير جدلا محموما لا نهاية له، وأنا لست مؤهلا تماما لمناقشة تلك الأسئلة ، وهي ليست مناسبة لتكون ضمن القائمة التي يمكنني أن أطلق عليها لقب أسئلة علمية ... يكون التركيز هنا على الأسئلة التي يمكن اتخاذ إجراء بشأنها ،أسئلة يمكن أن تقود إلى نتائج ملموسة وإلى تغيير ... يهتم هذا الكتاب بقدر أكبر أسئلة لا يستطيع غوغل أن يتوقعها بسهولة أو أن يجيب عنها إجابة صحيحة-أسئلة تتطلب نوعا أخر من البحث"
يمجد الكاتب الأسئلة كثيرا فالكتاب دعوة للتساؤل وخص معظم الكتاب عن أهمية ذلك في عالم الأعمال والابتكار .
وارين بيرغر بحكم أنه صحفي على اتصال دائم مع المبتكرين المبدعين وصناع التغيير جعله يرى الروابط والقواسم المشتركة بينهم وهي إنهم مميزين جدا في طرح الأسئلة .
ويشير عبر ابحاث اشار إليها من علماء الأعصاب والطب بأن الأطفال كثيري الأسئلة وكلما كبروا تنخفض بشكل كبير .
ويرى أن العلماء كانوا مناصرين للتساؤل كآينشتاين وستيف جوبز
ويقول ستيوارت فايرستاين" أن أحد العوامل الرئيسية في الاكتشافات العلمية يكمن في رغبة العلماء في تقبل الجهل واستخدام الأسئلة كوسيلة للإبحار عبره نحو اكتشافات جديدة"
وكان لديه الكثير من اللقاءات وذكر نماذج عن نجاحات المدارس القائمة على الأسئلة والقائمة على الاستقصاء والأسلوب التعلم السقراطي كمدارس ديبورا ماير ومن مبادئها "أن الطلاب ينبغي أن يطوروا عادة التعلم والأسئلة ، وأنه من غير الممكن تغذيتهم بالمعرفة قسراً"
نصيحة جورج كارلين للآباء والأمهات "لا تقوموا بتعليم أبنائكم القر��ءة فقط ، علموهم أن يضعوا ما يقرأوه موضع تساؤل ، علموهم أن يضعوا كل شيء موضع تساؤل "
ويرى أن "لوز سانتانا" من خلال تجربتها عرفت( أن أولئك الذين لا يعرفون يطرحون الأسئلة المناسبة يكونون عرضة لأن يحرموا مما قد يكونون في حاجة إليه ،أو يكون من حقهم الحصول عليه)
و سانتانا و روثستاين من قاما بتشكيل المنظمة الغير ربحية( معهد السؤال المناسب) والتي ذكرها الكاتب في العديد من المواضع والمعهد متخصص في تعليم الطلاب معالجة المشكلة من خلال توليد أسئلة .
وردد أن هناك تسلسل يمكن التعرف عليه في الكثير من قصص الإبتكار التي شكلت اختراقا
وهو :
لماذا ؟
ماذا لو ؟
كيف ؟
وذكر ذلك في قصص ريد هيستينغز مؤسس Netflix و فيليبس مبتكر القدم الاصطناعية ومؤسسي airbnb .
October 27, 2014
Humans are naturally wired to seek simple cause and effect stories. If A then B. If we change A this way then B changes that way.
Unfortunately, most of the world isn't that way, whether it's the natural world, our culture or (to the greatest extent) with the relationships between people. Situations are much more nuanced, more complex, and much less predictable than we think, but because we don't have time (or knowledge) to reflect on everything we encounter in the world to that depth, we tend to just simplify.
Simplifying isn't a problem, until you forget that you're simplifying. That's where questioning - the heart of this book - becomes valuable. To truly understand something, to explore the boundaries of what is and what might be, requires backing up and looking at something from a different perspective. That might be more general, more specific, from a different worldview...there are dozens of ways to do this. However what they all have in common is that they question the status quo - the current perception of the current situation.
Berger takes the idea of questioning and tries it from just about every angle. Why you would ask questions, how to ask them, how to come up with good questions, what to do with good ones when you find them...all very good and actionable advice on how to approach learning and doing creatively.
The real message of the book - and one that have come to wholeheartedly embrace in my own life - is that the questions are more important than the answers. Questions and uncertainty are what drive us to learn, to create, to experiment, and to improve.
Unfortunately, most of the world isn't that way, whether it's the natural world, our culture or (to the greatest extent) with the relationships between people. Situations are much more nuanced, more complex, and much less predictable than we think, but because we don't have time (or knowledge) to reflect on everything we encounter in the world to that depth, we tend to just simplify.
Simplifying isn't a problem, until you forget that you're simplifying. That's where questioning - the heart of this book - becomes valuable. To truly understand something, to explore the boundaries of what is and what might be, requires backing up and looking at something from a different perspective. That might be more general, more specific, from a different worldview...there are dozens of ways to do this. However what they all have in common is that they question the status quo - the current perception of the current situation.
Berger takes the idea of questioning and tries it from just about every angle. Why you would ask questions, how to ask them, how to come up with good questions, what to do with good ones when you find them...all very good and actionable advice on how to approach learning and doing creatively.
The real message of the book - and one that have come to wholeheartedly embrace in my own life - is that the questions are more important than the answers. Questions and uncertainty are what drive us to learn, to create, to experiment, and to improve.
October 2, 2017
I loved this one. It had a lot of inspirational thinking about focusing on the right question, but also some very real-life applications I put to work immediately. "Framestorming", brainstorms that focus only on the right question, was an immediate win.
March 19, 2014
I just loved this book. Provocative. Energizing!
December 14, 2020
As a novice teacher, I often cringed when a student asked, "Why," because I believed not having the answer would lessen my credibility. As I have grown throughout my 20+ year career, I have learned to embrace my lack of knowledge. I have grown throughout my career, I openly admit that I am not an expert; according to Berger, "An expert is someone who has stopped thinking because he 'knows'." I will be the first to admit that there is so much I do not know, but I am willing to ask questions so I can learn more. "Why" is no longer my nemesis; instead, I invest a lot of energy into having my students to ask why, to question reality, and to question their own assumptions. Historically, the goal of our educational system was to express the “right” answer. Students became less engaged as the constraints of curricula did not allow teachers to veer off-track. Ultimately, the world is changing and this old educational model is squelching the love of learning from our students and the passion from our teachers. In fact, to survive in this new age, questioning should be at the top of necessary skills. When students are encouraged to ask their own questions, they are going to invest their energy to find the answer!
Read this book!!
Read this book!!
February 23, 2021
Tìm mãi mới ra một cuốn sách có cảm giác ổn ổn về kỹ năng đặt câu hỏi. Mà đọc xong cũng hổng thấy ổn chút nào luôn.
Sách đọc tham khảo cho biết về sự tác động của câu hỏi đúng tới những quyết định kinh doanh của những tập đoàn/start up thành công. Tuy nhiên đọc xong mình nghĩ chắc cũng khó mà biết cách để tạo ra được câu hỏi. Làm sao để có câu hỏi, làm sao để có câu hỏi hay, làm sao để có câu hỏi có thể giải quyết được vấn đề... mới là điều mà những độc giả đọc mấy cuốn sách này muốn nè.
Phần dịch cũng không tệ, nhưng vì nội dung không quá xuất sắc nên không khuyến khích các bạn tìm đọc đâu.
Sách đọc tham khảo cho biết về sự tác động của câu hỏi đúng tới những quyết định kinh doanh của những tập đoàn/start up thành công. Tuy nhiên đọc xong mình nghĩ chắc cũng khó mà biết cách để tạo ra được câu hỏi. Làm sao để có câu hỏi, làm sao để có câu hỏi hay, làm sao để có câu hỏi có thể giải quyết được vấn đề... mới là điều mà những độc giả đọc mấy cuốn sách này muốn nè.
Phần dịch cũng không tệ, nhưng vì nội dung không quá xuất sắc nên không khuyến khích các bạn tìm đọc đâu.
March 28, 2018
interesting to learn that asking a good question is an art and can be learned and it is more important to ask a good question than the answer itself. the combination of why, how and what if are good place to start. from now on i think i will try to lean more towards questioning than looking for answer for a change
June 25, 2015
I was walking around Politics and Prose in Washington DC when I came upon this relative thin book. The title intrigued me so I started look into it. At first the book did not appeal to me much, although some of the chapters did seem interesting. I ended up buying it as a part of my personal mission to find anything and everything regarding improving myself and spurring my thinking process.
I am very glad that I did because this book has turned into one of those books that has affected my world view as well as changed my way of thinking. The basic premise is not all that revolutionary: In order to be more creative, to think better, to be innovative, one needs to ask better, more probing questions. Do you see that I wasn't all that impressed?
As I read the book, bits of wisdom and sparks of recognition came to me slowly but steadily. Warren Berger laid out a very convincing case that we, as a culture had become, through our own impatience and lazy assumptions unlearned our own ability to ask questions. We have become quite good as asking bad questions, lazy question, shallow questions, wrong questions.
As I read the book, I became more systematic about underlining key ideas, I became more engrossed in the art and practice of asking questions. Berger gives us a lot of precedence, as will any good business book writer, but he also challenges us with the questions that he was asking. It is all very meta and coupled. I must say that his process hooked me and made me think longer and more in depth about how I think and ask questions.
In the end I had mind mapped the entire book and I am going through the process of creating a cheat sheet of the lessons learned for myself as I am convinced that I will need to be reminded of the practice of asking questions in my daily life.
You can say that I liked this book, quite a bit.
I am very glad that I did because this book has turned into one of those books that has affected my world view as well as changed my way of thinking. The basic premise is not all that revolutionary: In order to be more creative, to think better, to be innovative, one needs to ask better, more probing questions. Do you see that I wasn't all that impressed?
As I read the book, bits of wisdom and sparks of recognition came to me slowly but steadily. Warren Berger laid out a very convincing case that we, as a culture had become, through our own impatience and lazy assumptions unlearned our own ability to ask questions. We have become quite good as asking bad questions, lazy question, shallow questions, wrong questions.
As I read the book, I became more systematic about underlining key ideas, I became more engrossed in the art and practice of asking questions. Berger gives us a lot of precedence, as will any good business book writer, but he also challenges us with the questions that he was asking. It is all very meta and coupled. I must say that his process hooked me and made me think longer and more in depth about how I think and ask questions.
In the end I had mind mapped the entire book and I am going through the process of creating a cheat sheet of the lessons learned for myself as I am convinced that I will need to be reminded of the practice of asking questions in my daily life.
You can say that I liked this book, quite a bit.
February 23, 2020
The book is structured into chapters of question which was a refreshing way of laying out the facts. It highlights how being curious and asking the right type of questions can lead us to consider things that we might not have even dream off
Reading this book helped me bring together several thoughts I have about creativity and innovation. A few interesting points I found are
1. Asking questions is instant but don’t expect the answer to come immediately.
- answers need time and we need to allow our subconscious mind to think and work on it
- it is a process to uncover and by experimenting and trying new things we build on and get better and better answers
2. The framework outline to ask better questions are
A. ask why : in terms of to challenge assumptions and status quo about a problem and situation
- I found asking why is a bit dangerous If we focus on finding reason of why someone treated ya unfairly or why we didn’t get something as it could lead to the wrong thoughts instead of looking for a positive way to solve a problem
B. What if ? It helps us to consider possibilities. Similar to design thinking question of how might we. The book has an interesting notion of question storming instead of brain storming using how night we
C.how ? How to start taking action . Probably an important question as unless action is taken all the asking questions is just theory.
3. I love the strategy about how to start asking question as basically we need time to step back and not be focusing on just constantly doing . This was a question I was searching on how to start being more aware and start looking at challenges differently at work. Basically the Brain needs time to rest and subconsciously work on the question or just free up some thinking time
Reading this book helped me bring together several thoughts I have about creativity and innovation. A few interesting points I found are
1. Asking questions is instant but don’t expect the answer to come immediately.
- answers need time and we need to allow our subconscious mind to think and work on it
- it is a process to uncover and by experimenting and trying new things we build on and get better and better answers
2. The framework outline to ask better questions are
A. ask why : in terms of to challenge assumptions and status quo about a problem and situation
- I found asking why is a bit dangerous If we focus on finding reason of why someone treated ya unfairly or why we didn’t get something as it could lead to the wrong thoughts instead of looking for a positive way to solve a problem
B. What if ? It helps us to consider possibilities. Similar to design thinking question of how might we. The book has an interesting notion of question storming instead of brain storming using how night we
C.how ? How to start taking action . Probably an important question as unless action is taken all the asking questions is just theory.
3. I love the strategy about how to start asking question as basically we need time to step back and not be focusing on just constantly doing . This was a question I was searching on how to start being more aware and start looking at challenges differently at work. Basically the Brain needs time to rest and subconsciously work on the question or just free up some thinking time
October 31, 2015
In "A More Beautiful Question", author Warren Berger poses the ultimate meta-question: why do we not question? The entire book is an exploration on the art of questioning and its inherent power, which Berger sustains is not only an increasingly pivotal skill in our futures but also the biggest underlying reason why creative people have succeeded.
What really got me engaged with this book was the notion that young children question the hell out of everything yet this very nature becomes subdued to the point of going mute as we grow older. Schools teach people to find answers yet discourage questioning. Work environments are seldom conducive to questioning, lest you be the sore thumb that sticks out. And many of us simply don't question because we perceive it as a personal weakness.
Berger evolves a framework based on the "Why?", "What If?" and "How?" triplet of questions, a roadmap to identify problems, explore possible scenarios around them and zero in on the best solutions - which may well lead to ever more questioning. By analyzing all of this both from the individual and the business point of views - and the ways they are inextricably linked - he tries to put us in a position of finding great questions instead of simply attempting to find answers. Admittedly there's some repetition in the text (which is why I didn't give it a full rating) but at its core it's still definitely a mind opener of a book.
What really got me engaged with this book was the notion that young children question the hell out of everything yet this very nature becomes subdued to the point of going mute as we grow older. Schools teach people to find answers yet discourage questioning. Work environments are seldom conducive to questioning, lest you be the sore thumb that sticks out. And many of us simply don't question because we perceive it as a personal weakness.
Berger evolves a framework based on the "Why?", "What If?" and "How?" triplet of questions, a roadmap to identify problems, explore possible scenarios around them and zero in on the best solutions - which may well lead to ever more questioning. By analyzing all of this both from the individual and the business point of views - and the ways they are inextricably linked - he tries to put us in a position of finding great questions instead of simply attempting to find answers. Admittedly there's some repetition in the text (which is why I didn't give it a full rating) but at its core it's still definitely a mind opener of a book.
May 1, 2017
I've always been interested in good questions, intrigued from childhood Sunday School days by the biblical admonition to "ask and you shall receive." This book is an easy and interesting read about using questions, with children, with colleagues, and even with yourself. There are some great stories of how questions led to breakthroughs in products, in scientific thinking, in philanthropic work, and other areas. And, this is the first book with an index to all the questions in the book!
My top 5 favorite questions/insights from the book:
1. "According to Paul Harris, a Harvard child psychologist and author, research shows that a child asks about forty thousand questions between the ages of two and five."
2. (Deborah) Meier (a pioneer of the small schools movement) started with two particular ways of thinking she wanted to emphasize -- skepticism and empathy. "I believe you have to have an open-mindedness to the possibility that you're wrong, or that anything may be wrong," she said, "I've always been very concerned with democracy. If you can't imagine you could be wrong, what's the point of democracy? And if you can't imagine how or why others think differently, then how could you tolerate democracy?"
3. If we don't agree on an answer yet, can we at least come to terms on a question?
4. What does it mean to be convinced?
5. What's truly worth doing whether I fail or succeed?
My top 5 favorite questions/insights from the book:
1. "According to Paul Harris, a Harvard child psychologist and author, research shows that a child asks about forty thousand questions between the ages of two and five."
2. (Deborah) Meier (a pioneer of the small schools movement) started with two particular ways of thinking she wanted to emphasize -- skepticism and empathy. "I believe you have to have an open-mindedness to the possibility that you're wrong, or that anything may be wrong," she said, "I've always been very concerned with democracy. If you can't imagine you could be wrong, what's the point of democracy? And if you can't imagine how or why others think differently, then how could you tolerate democracy?"
3. If we don't agree on an answer yet, can we at least come to terms on a question?
4. What does it mean to be convinced?
5. What's truly worth doing whether I fail or succeed?
June 15, 2017
A More Beautiful Question is a flashy journey through the power of questioning to spark dialog, to bring people together, to upset the world, and too innovate. Berger synthesizes a lot of experience as journalist to look at the role that questioning plays in creativity, and develops a simple model based around "Why?-->What If?-->How?"
This book is best when it's selling ideas: Montessori schools as an antidote to how public schools beat questioning out of kids, the people at The Right Question Institute and IDEO. However, it commits the all-too-common error of assuming that because Silicon Valley people are rich, they are also wise. Berger tries to lay out a hagiographic account of heroically questioning tech founders, which doesn't match up with the actually process of innovation, or the very obvious limits to Silicon Valley ideology. Protip for Uber and AirBNB, wholesale violation of the law is not a business model. And likewise for Google and Facebook, advertising is not a human net good.
Also, questioning is hard. Trust me, as a PhD social scientist the most important part of a project is setting up your research question in a way that is both impactful and doable. Questioning is an action, but it also seems to be a behavior characteristic of a questioning mindset. Why do we stop asking questions? What if we never stopped? How do we ask questions again? This book says the answer is a kind of California zen. I'm less sure.
This book is best when it's selling ideas: Montessori schools as an antidote to how public schools beat questioning out of kids, the people at The Right Question Institute and IDEO. However, it commits the all-too-common error of assuming that because Silicon Valley people are rich, they are also wise. Berger tries to lay out a hagiographic account of heroically questioning tech founders, which doesn't match up with the actually process of innovation, or the very obvious limits to Silicon Valley ideology. Protip for Uber and AirBNB, wholesale violation of the law is not a business model. And likewise for Google and Facebook, advertising is not a human net good.
Also, questioning is hard. Trust me, as a PhD social scientist the most important part of a project is setting up your research question in a way that is both impactful and doable. Questioning is an action, but it also seems to be a behavior characteristic of a questioning mindset. Why do we stop asking questions? What if we never stopped? How do we ask questions again? This book says the answer is a kind of California zen. I'm less sure.
November 26, 2014
The skill of crafting questions, the importance of asking questions, and the recognition of one's right to pose questions are all essential to our democracy and to a quest for genuine knowledge and innovative change. The Right Question Institute -- which is glancingly alluded to in this book -- has these tenets at the heart of its mission, and its materials and protocols are far more helpful and insightful than this book. A MORE BEAUTIFUL QUESTION relies on recycled stories and research, and covers terrain familiar for those who know of the Right Question Institute and design thinking protocols. I wish Warren Berger and his publisher had thought to ask these questions: If we are writing about innovation and questioning, how can we be innovative ourselves? Can we present these ideas differently? A MORE BEAUTIFUL QUESTION reads like an extended article from a 1990s business magazine, full of shopworn business anecdotes such as the story of the guy who questioned why athletes weren't peeing more and decided to invent Gatorade (thanks for that, questioning gods!) and saying three times what might have been said once. I give the book three stars because the book identifies questioning as central to successful education and business -- yay! -- but does not live up to its promise.
March 17, 2014
A fascinating, educational and engaging read! In a society characterized by information glut, Berger argues that strong inquiry, rather than fact-retention, is the key to creative problem solving. As a teacher interested in project-based and inquiry-based learning, I was intrigued by the title and I was not disappointed. The book tells the stories of questioners who impacted their career fields, and by extension, our world, while outlining questioning techniques that lead to fresh perspectives on personal and professional situations. The author also dabbles in brain science so that the reader is able to see what’s happening behind the scenes. I came away from this book with excitement about applying these ideas and- of course, with some questions of my own!
*I received this book through a goodreads giveaway
*I received this book through a goodreads giveaway
June 20, 2019
Berger's book took me a year to read. My persistence shows how much I valued the book. The length of time it took me reflects partly the competing responsibilities of my life and the density of the text. In part, I mean this literally. About every third page of the book contains an inserted text box with a side story presented in a font several sizes smaller than the main text. I read every one, but often found myself resenting how they took me away from the main flow of the text. Ultimately I think this book will shift my thinking. I am left considering how I should best improve my own questioning skills.
February 23, 2015
Very well executed book on the subject and strategy of inquiry. Not just asking questions, but asking the right questions. Berger has done a crazy amount of homework, interviewing many of today's most recognized business thought leaders, and the result is both an awesome collection of relevant stories and an impressive strategy guide for how to get started, and where to go after that start. Recommended.
June 11, 2018
A More Beautiful Question is a beautiful book. Berger uses real life examples to illustrate different methods of asking questions that lead to greater creativity, innovation, solutions, success in business and personal happiness. It introduces the reader to a world of people who utilize these methods and what they have accomplished. It is both philosophical and concrete in its approach and littered with nuggets of wisdom and eye-opening ideas. I highly recommend it.
January 21, 2016
The writing style is engaging, as Berger constantly is using very specific stories to illustrate his concepts. It's an inspiring read, and one that does not feel like a TED talk stretched into a book-length work (which I feel I'm seeing too much of in recent readings).
October 26, 2016
Excelente! Ao buscar respostas, muitas vezes deixamos de reparar no valor de buscar as questões corretas antes. Questões abrem novas perspectivas, novas ideias e quebram paradigmas. É uma ferramenta e tanto que podemos aprender a usar mais e mais!
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