To Ask Is to Think

By Gu Dian

The ability to ask questions reveals the depth of one's thinking power.

Take the topic “People never finish books nowadays” for instance, most people respond to it by means of sighing, complaining or telling a few jokes. However, I often ask 6 WHYs in a row.

1 Q: Why aren't people finishing books nowadays?

A: Because their methods of reading are wrong and there is too much on their book lists.

2 Q: Why is there too much knowledge?

A: Because the knowledge is so extensive that we do not know what to single out, or because we are in an era of professional subdivision and knowledge explosion.

3 Q: Why do you have to finish learning all the knowledge?

A: In fact, you don't have to finish it. Just learn something useful. As for certain knowledge, ask someone who knows it.

4 Q: How can we judge if what we have learned is useful?

A: See if it helps you solve your problems more efficiently and most satisfyingly.

5 Q: What's the biggest problem facing you now? Why is it so important to you?

A: It often involves one's values and everyone has problems of their own.

6 Q: Why do people need to solve problems?

A : ...

You can clearly see that the further you go down, the deeper you think. When answering the first two questions, most of the problems can be solved through techniques and strategies, such as “XX Reading Method” or “XX Book List.” When answering the later questions, thinking becomes systematic and judgment standards follow. If you continue to ask a fifth and sixth question, you will find that you are gradually moving into the realm of values and philosophy. This is a how-what-why process.

Einstein once said, “If I have to answer an important question in an hour, I will spend 55 minutes considering whether I'm asking the right question.”

(From Transition, Zhongxin Press. Translation: Xia Jianqing)

提问即思考

文/古典

提问的能力，颇能看出一个人思考的深度。

比如“书读不过来了”这个话题，大部分人的思路是感叹一下，抱怨一下，讲几个笑话。我常常会连续追问6个“Why”（为什么）。

1W：为什么书读不过来？

答：因为方法不对，且知识太多。

2W：为什么知识太多？

答：因为筛选不够，也因为专业细分和知识爆炸。

3W：为什么非要学完这些知识不可？

答：其实不一定要学完，只要学到其中有用的就好，有些领域别人懂，问人就好了。

4W：怎么才能判断哪些是学了有用的知识？

答：最高效、最妥善解决你的问题的。

5W：你有什么问题？为什么这个问题对你这么重要？

答：往往涉及个人价值观的层面，每个人都有自己的大问题。

6W：人为什么要解决问题？

答：……

你能明显看到，越是往下，思考越深入。当回答1W、2W的时候，大部分问题可以通过技术和策略，比如“××读书法”“××书单”来解决；当回答3W、4W的时候，思考就变成系统和判断标准；如果你继续追问5W、6W，就会发现你逐渐进入价值观和哲学层面。这是一个“How（怎么做）—What（做什么）—Why（为什么）”的过程。

所以，爱因斯坦说：“如果我必须用1小时解决一个重要问题，我会花55分钟考虑我是否问对了问题。”

（摘自《跃迁》中信出版社）