101 Questions To Ask Yourself in Life

by Celes |
Self-Improvement

Posted: Oct 30, 2010
Updated:
Nov 21, 2024

This article is available for download as an ebook. Click on the button below to download.

(Updated on March 12, 2023)

“The key to wisdom is knowing all the right questions.” — John Simone

What questions do you ask yourself every day?

Believe it or not, the questions you ask yourself affect the life you lead. That’s because the questions you ask determine what you focus on, leading to certain actions (or inactions), thereafter causing the results (or lack of) in your life.

When you ask limiting questions, you get limiting answers, often causing you to circle in the same negative state in life. On the other hand, when you ask forwarding questions, you get solutions, ideas, and new perspectives, which then help you break out of a negative state and rise to the next level.

Some people like to ask “Why am I so unlucky?” or “Why am I always caught in such a bad situation?” Because these questions are negative, the answers you get are naturally disempowering. On the other hand, questions like “What can I learn from this experience?”, “What can I do differently moving forward?”, and “What am I grateful for?” are empowering. They get you to think positively, putting you on the path to a better life.

If you don’t normally self-reflect, you might be stumped by these questions. This is perfectly normal. I remember when I was in primary school, the teacher asked us how we would describe ourselves. The question stumped me because I had never thought much about it. It took me some time to find some meaningful adjectives to describe myself, but even then they didn’t seem right. That was one of the starting points of my self-exploration journey. Somewhere along the way, I became a big fan of introspection, enjoying the process of self-reflection and thinking over questions.

Today, I believe questions are key to our personal growth. In this guide, you’ll find 101 important questions for your self-reflection, created by me. Many are questions that I ask my clients during our coaching sessions to remove their inner blocks and discover their inner selves. These questions will help you focus on what’s important to you.

Some things to note:

It’s okay if you are stumped by these questions. The answers are there, inside you. Clear your mind, relax, and ask yourself these questions at different sittings. Soon the answers will come!
These questions are not meant to be answered in one shot — they are meant to be reflected over time as part of your personal growth journey. Pick out 2-3 questions to reflect on today, then check back a few days later to work on the others.
There is no one final answer. Life is a continuous journey. Your answers today may be different from your answers one, three, or five years later. Refer to this list regularly to think over the questions and see where you stand.
Bookmark this article — it’s highly important for your growth. I’ve also created an ebook version for your easy reading — simply click the download button at the start of the article to download!

I present to you, 101 important questions to ask yourself:

Who are you? How would you describe yourself?
What are you passionate about?
What past achievements are you proudest of?
What are you grateful for? (Day 14 of Live a Better Life in 30 Days is about expressing gratitude.)
What are the most important things to you in life?
What are your values? (Values are principles that you regard as most important, that you wish to embody as a person. Day 15 of Live a Better Life in 30 Days is about identifying your values.)
On a scale of 1-10, how much do you love yourself? Why did you give this score?
Is it 10/10? If not, how can you achieve a 10/10 self-love?
What is your ideal self? What qualities does he/she have?
How can you be more like your ideal self?
Look at your life now. On a scale of 1-10, how happy are you with your life? Why did you give this score?
How can you increase your happiness level?
If you have a year left to live, what would you do?
If you only have a week left to live, what would you do?
If you only have a day left to live, what would you do?
If you only have a minute left to live, what would you do?
What are the biggest things you’ve learned in life to date?
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Imagine you are 10 years older. What advice would you give to your present self?
What are your Quadrant 2 tasks? (Quadrant 2 tasks are the important but not urgent things on our to-do list.)
How can you start working on them?
What are the things that normally keep you busy, but are unimportant?
Can you discard them? If not, how can you streamline, automate, or delegate them?
What are your biggest goals and dreams?
If you were to do something for free for the rest of your life, what would it be?
What would you do if you cannot fail — if there are no limitations in money, resources, time, or networks?
How can you make this happen, even if in a small way?
What do you want to achieve 1 year from now?
…3 years?
…5 years?
…10 years?
How important are these goals to you? (If not important, remove them until you’re left with the most important goals.)
What are your action steps to achieve your first goal?
What are your action steps to achieve your second goal?
What are your action steps to achieve your other goals?
Identify three people who have achieved your desired goals.
What did they do to achieve the goals? What can you learn from them?
Are you putting any parts of your life on hold? Why?
What is the top priority in your life right now? What are you doing about it?
If you were to die tomorrow, what would be your biggest regret?
…What can you do now to make sure that it doesn’t happen?
Looking back on your life, have you done anything that you regretted?
…What happened, and why?
…What can you learn from this episode?
…What can you do differently moving forward?
Is there a grudge, a pain that you are holding on to?
…Why are you holding on to it?
…Is it time to let it go?
What is your biggest frustration right now?
…What can you do about it?
What is the biggest thing you can do now to change your life for the better?
If you have a million dollars, what would you do with it?
Do you love your current job? Why or why not?
What is your ideal career?
…What can you do to start working towards it?
What is your ideal diet?
…Are you following your ideal diet now?
…If not, what can you do to move towards it?
What is your ideal home like?
…Is your current home a match with your ideal home?
…If not, what do you need to do to achieve your ideal home?
What is your ideal physical look?
…Is your current look a match with your ideal look?
…If not, what do you need to do to achieve your ideal look?
What is your ideal life?
…What do you need to do to start living your ideal life?
What would you want to say to yourself in 10 years?
What do you fear most? Why?
Is there anything you are running away from? Why?
Are you settling for less than what you are worth? Why?
What is your inner dialogue like? (Day 26 of Be a Better Me in 30 Days is about uncovering your limiting thoughts.)
Do you have limiting beliefs? What are they?
Are they helping you to achieve your goals? If not, is it time to let them go?
What empowering beliefs can you replace them with?
What bad habits do you want to break?
How can you break these bad habits?
What good habits do you want to cultivate?
How can you develop these good habits?
What is the meaning of life?
What is your life purpose? What is your mission?
What drives you? What are the times when you are most inspired, motivated, and charged up?
What did you do during those times? How can you do more of that starting today?
Who are your favorite people to hang out with?
Why? How can you spend more time with them?
You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with. Who are the 5 people you spend the most time with?
Are these people enabling you or holding you back? (Day 18 of Live a Better Life in 30 Days is about evaluating your relationships.)
For the people holding you back, how can you spend less time with them?
Do you have any toxic relationships in your life? If so, is it time to let them go?
Where can you meet people who can uplift you?
Is there someone whom you admire or respect?
What do you like about this person? How can you be more like him/her?
What qualities do you look for in your ideal partner?
Do you embody these qualities too?
Are you afraid of letting others get close to you? Why?
Who are the most important people to you in the world?
How can you spend more time with them starting today?
Describe the kind of person you enjoy spending time with. How can you be this person to others?
If you could choose anyone in the world, who would you like to be your mentor?
How can you learn from them (even if you don’t know them personally)?
How can you change someone’s life for the better today?
What are you going to do differently after reading this article?