Q&A

When I was little, I remember thinking that one of the perks of being a “grown up” would be knowing all the things. I mean, no one is as smart as your mom or dad or teacher or any other of those adults who somehow have answers to all of those questions we ask as kids. Man, I thought. I can’t wait until I have all the answers.

And then I became a teenager and started thinking that I was finally hitting that turning point. The place where I actually know stuff. Actually, I know more. In fact… maybe I even know better. And… maybe those adults… didn’t actually know so much after all? Maybe they didn’t have all the answers like I thought they did. Oh yeah, I thought, I truly am about to have all the answers.

And then I became an adult.

And I realized that I’d been looking at it wrong the whole time.

You see, my formal education, from preschool all the way through graduate school, was a constant series of finding answers. Short answers. Long answers Multiple choice, essays, heck - entire theses! Everything was supposed to have an answer. Not only that, everything had a right answer. So of course I thought that that was what I was supposed to do. That finding, no, having, the answers was the ultimate goal.

But the truth is… it’s not actually about the answers.

It’s about the questions.

Yes, life is a series of learning. Learning through experience. Learning through our senses. Learning from books and people and classes. But the most consistent thing I have found through all of this learning, and I don’t think that I am unique in this, is that the more I know, the more I realize exactly how much I don’t know. And I actually think that that is so very valuable.

And trust me, I get it - answers are necessary in many, many situations. But when you stop to think about it, we all spend so much of our lives searching for answers as the end goal. Striving for more of them. Pursuing them. On a journey. On, dare I say it, on a quest.

And what is a quest for answers if not the definition of a question in and of itself?

So keep seeking. Keep exploring. Keep looking in as many ways and places as you can. But not just for answers. Turn the journey into a true quest. Learn to ask more questions. Better questions. Harder questions. Questions that may or may not have answers, or at least not a singular correct response.

Questions have more power than answers. They have the power to expand our understanding and our world. They have the power to spark change. They have the power to connect people together. Questions teach us a lot about each other. Questions teach us a lot about ourselves. Questions open up a world of possibilities, while answers threaten to limit our potential.

Because an answer has no future. An answer is a period. Sometimes even an exclamation point. Either way, it’s an end. A finish line. But the truth, the growth, the adventure… should not stop.

So never stop asking questions. And remember that you don’t always have to find the answers. As long as you find more questions.