Use These Hypothetical Questions to Start a Conversation If You’ve Forgotten How to Communicate
As more people receive vaccines and COVID-19 rates decline , those who avoid social situations for pandemic or personal reasons (or both) may find themselves in situations where they must communicate. This includes both starting a conversation and conducting it.
Rather than asking someone how they’ve been in the past year and a half, Parade’s Marin Lyles recommends starting with some hypothetical questions. Here are some tips for the next time you run into a communication problem.
Why hypothetical questions come in handy
It’s not always easy to figure out what to say to other people, so why not turn it around and ask them a hypothetical question. Here’s what Liles has to say about them :
Hypothetical questions, serious or stupid, are a great way to strike up an interesting conversation. They create an open environment in which people can share their thoughts and feelings. You get to know the person you are talking to better with these “What if …?” questions make you think and use your imagination.
Examples of hypothetical questions
Here are some examples of questions to start with:
1. If you had the opportunity, would you like to be pain-free for the rest of your life?
2. Would you accept a $ 70K a week job offer when you get paid to sit in a black room and do nothing 20 hours a day?
3. What would I hear if I asked a group of people who know you to name five adjectives to describe you?
4. Where on the planet would you never want to live and why?
5. The body of which famous person would you take upon yourself if you were a zombie?
6. What would be your first reaction if I told you that you have failed?
7. Would you rather forget about yourself or forget about someone else?
8. Will you be able to sacrifice 30 years of your life in exchange for the death of a stranger?
9. Would you accept that which eliminates your body’s need for sleep if you were given it?
10. Would you prefer to constantly say whatever comes to mind, or not say anything at all?
11. What kind of mask would you prefer if you had to wear it for the rest of your life?
12. What kind of music would you prefer if you could listen to one song for the rest of your life?
13. What program would you like if you had to be trapped in a TV show for a month? Who would you be if you were a character?
14. We can choose one color that our eyes can see before we are born. What color do you want to choose?
15. Every day 12 new things come to your home, each of which begins with a letter of your choice. Which letter would you choose?
16. What would you choose if you had the opportunity to live seventy years and be incredibly happy, or live forever and be unhappy?
17. How would you deal with a situation at work when you were asked to do a task that was contrary to your morality?
18. Would you like to be the president of the United States or the head of state of a monarchy? Where would you rule if you were a monarch?
19. What would you eat if you could only eat one food for the rest of your life?
20. Do you think you can convince a colleague to see your point of view on the direction of the strategy? If so, how would you convince them?
You can read Lyles’ full list of 170 hypothetical questions in her article .