No one may have ever told you

But there’s a mechanism in your mind

Designed to seek answers

Anytime a question is asked.

That’s right!

Anytime your brain hears a question

Whether the question is asked by you

Or someone else

A process inside your head is triggered

That’s begins searching for possible answers

This mechanism is automatic

You don’t control it

It just happens

And you can’t really stop it either

When a question is asked

The mechanism is triggered

And answers are sought

What’s more…

It doesn’t matter how rational the question is

This mechanism simply begins thinking

About possible answers and solutions

And then brings those answers and solutions

Into your awareness

Don’t believe me?

Try it for yourself

Ask yourself a question, like:

Why is swimming fun?

Notice the answers that come into your head

It may say things like:

• You get to be in water
• It gives the body movement
• It reminds you of sun and summer
  

In fact...

You can ask two opposing questions

And this mechanism

Will seek answers to both

You might ask yourself:

Why are kids so annoying? 

And the mechanism of your brain will

Come up with answers, like:

• They’re loud
• They don't listen
• They’re out of control
  

Now, if you ask the opposite question

Why are kids so much fun?

The responses will be totally different

They will be in line with the fun qualities of kids, like:

• They're innocent
• They're playful
• They're full of energy and joy
  

Whether you think

Kids are annoying or fun

Is irrelevant

The answers your brain gives you

Will always be in line with the questions you ask

Since asking questions triggers your mind

To search for answers

This is a great way

To use it like ChatGPT

By asking yourself questions

That move you in the direction you want

For example …

If you’ve lost your phone

You might ask:

Where’s my phone?

Or

Where did I last see my phone?

And your brain

Will start thinking about

Where your phone might be

Or if you’re stressed about an upcoming deadline

You can ask:

How can I finish this assignment on time?

When you ask such questions

Just like ChatGPT

Your brain starts thinking

About possible answers and solutions

It happens automatically

You don’t have to try

Or put in effort

What’s even more…

This can keep you out of drama

Anytime something unexpected happens

The brain has a tendency

To release intense fear and anxiety

Which not only limits your thinking

But makes it seem

The solution is going to be

Much harder than it is

So we make things more difficult

Than things need to be

For example….

Recently, a client of mine left her purse in an Uber

After being dropped off at the airport

When she realized that

Her mind went into panic, thinking:

- I don’t have my ID

- I can’t get on my fight

- I will miss the flight

- I'll need to go to the DMV to get another ID

- I’m going to have to cancel my credit cards

- All my money is in there

As you can see…

She was spiraling out of control

Then she stopped and asked herself:

How can I make sure to catch this flight?

Suddenly

Her panic began to subside

And her brain began working on solutions:

- Although I don’t have my driver’s license

- I have enough time to go home and pick up my passport

- Maybe I can have my husband drop of the passport

- Maybe my work ID might get me on the plane

And then a thought surfaced

- I can call Uber to contact the driver

Which lead to another thought

- Maybe I can message the driver directly from the app

She checked to see if she could

And she could

So she did

And the driver came back and dropped off the purse

Drama avoided

Asking the right question

Can keep you from spiraling down a bad direction

And see solutions you’re too caught up from seeing

Solutions that are obvious

And staring you in the face

What’s really great about this feature

Is that unlike ChatGPT

Which only gives you answers

With your brain

You will not only get answers

But often

You’ll find yourself acting on the answer

For example…

Another one of my clients used to struggle to get out of bed

He’d lay in bed for hours on end

Trying to call up the energy to get up

He tried all the traditional tips

But none seemed to work

Now

Every morning he wakes up

He asks himself:

How can I get out of bed and jump into a hot shower?

Not only does his brain come up with answers

But he finds himself naturally getting up

That’s because…

Asking "how" signals to your brain

You want that outcome

And your brain will do its best

To create that outcome

If you’re nervous about an upcoming presentation

You might just ask:

How can I stay calm and relaxed? 

Or 

How can I deliver an excellent presentation?

You’ll find yourself naturally getting calm

And delivering the presentation

Nervous about an upcoming interview?

Ask yourself:

How can I have an excellent interview that gets me the job?

These are just some examples

There are many more ways to prompt your mind

The mistake most people make 

Is they ask themselves “why”

Why can't I get stuff done

Why isn't this working

Why does this keep happening?

Or

Why can't I do anything right?

Asking "why" reinforces the negative

Remember your brain doesn’t care what the question is

It simply searches for answers

When you ask why

You’re telling your brain

That you can't do anything right

And now you want answers as to why

This not only keeps you from seeing solutions

But reinforces the problem

And essentially

You nail the coffin to your own grave

So…

STOP ASKING WHY

And instead ask, “how”

How can I give an excellent speech?

How can I finish this assignment on time?

How can I fund this project?

How...

How...

How...

Like I said

This is just the start

You can prompt engineer your brain

In so many ways

You can use it:

- In relationships

- With your goals

- To manage emotions

- On your kids

- And more

I put together a fun little course called Prompt Engineering for Your Mind

It shows you how to use this technique

To shift how you look at problems

Deal with difficult situations

And move in the direction you want

Smooth and easily