Questions are powerful. Most often, whether or not we find the answers we seek in life will depend on if we start by asking the right question. With the technology of search engines, we have an infinite number of questions we can ask and an equal amount of answers to discover. With endless possibilities, I wondered, "What do we as humans want to know most?" So I asked Google and what I found was intriguing, but unsurprising.
Here are the top ten most searched "how to" questions:
how to tie a tie
how to kiss
how to get pregnant
how to lose weight
how to draw
how to make money
how to make pancakes
how to write a cover letter
how to make french toast
how to lose belly fat
The list itself is interesting enough, but analyzing it sheds a light into the magic and mystery of being human.
First, I'd be remiss not to acknowledge that pancakes AND french toast made the top ten. Incredible. Second, and definitely more surprisingly, the questions on this list are the same questions people have been asking for millennia. You may say, "We haven't had cover letters for thousands of years?" Sure, but that's not really what they're asking, is it?
I think about the middle schooler attending his 8th grade graduation, unsure of what a double Windsor is. I envision a girl self-conscious of her body, seeking ways to help her clothes fit better. I picture a college graduate applying for their first "real" job.
Life is never-ending game of asking questions, finding answers, and asking more questions. Never forget, what we ask determines what we find.
Action
Next time you open Google to ask it something, ask a human in your life first.
Question
What are you asking?
Quote
“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.” - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe