Relationships are an important part of living a happy life. In fact, research has found that numerous deep relationships is the key to living a happy life.
One way to create those bonds comes from having in-depth conversations, not just surface-level small talk. That means going beyond the simple "What's up?" and "How are you?" questions. Here are eight questions that will inspire deeper conversations:
- "How are you, really?" Adding the extra "really" gives the person permission to tell you more.
- "How are you doing right now?" Indicates that we're talking about the present moment.
- "What's been on your mind lately?" This could be anything!
- “If you were being completely honest with me, how would you describe your feelings lately?” Again, permission to delve deeper.
- “What’s feeling good, and what’s feeling hard?" Or, similarly, you could ask, "What was the best part of your day/week?" "The worst?"
- “What word would you use to describe your life right now?” This can be very revealing.
- “The last time we talked, you were dealing with [X problem]. How has that been lately?” People respond well when they know you remember previous conversations -- it means you were actually listening!
- “What question do you wish someone would ask you right now?” Takes the focus off of your question and let's the person be more imaginative about what they want to take about.