Latter-day Array view: This article was designed as business/life skills advice, and we think it’s awesome ministering advice too!

via Forbes—  

Today we want to offer a makeover to the standard question, “How are you?” We ask this question with such regularity that most of us pick from a standard set of responses, with very little thought. Our standard responses? Busy. Fine. Okay. Good.

The only reason most of us ask this question is because it would appear impolite not to ask. We usually ask it as a greeting rather than with the intent of actually acquiring information about the other person.

Why bother asking a question that is almost guaranteed to generate no new information? That’s why this question, “How are you?,” is in need of a makeover. If you’re greeting someone you truly care about, greet them in a way that shows you are genuinely asking about their life. Better yet, greet them in a way that shows genuine care AND leads to new information that can inspire positive action.

We offer five alternative questions below. All five are positive – focused either on highlighting the best of the past or inviting the responder to identify a positive future. All five are information-seeking: listen closely, and you will learn something about that person’s life, character, and ideas. All five are initial questions, appropriate for a relatively fast greeting or for sparking a short conversation. And finally, the five questions can’t be answered with a one-word response (Yes, No, Busy, Fine), which invites engagement. Here they are:

#1. What was the best part about your day?

#2: What work is most exciting you this week?

#3: What new ideas are giving you energy lately?

#4: Tell me one thing you’ve learned recently that inspired you.

#5: What is one thing we could do right now to make this (day, project, event) even better?

Read more of this article at Forbes