If you’ve studied any philosophy in high school or college, you’ve no doubt heard of The Socratic Method. It is a form of inquiry (named after the classical Greek philosopher, Socrates) that is based upon asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and to illuminate ideas.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been one to ask a lot of questions. I’m sure that this sometimes annoyed my parents and exasperated my teachers, but asking questions is how I learned to satisfy my curiosity about the many interesting things in the world around me. Once I was in college however; my academic advisor taught me the value of asking questions in order to gain understanding not just of the world around me, but also of the things that were going on inside of me. Not only did this help me to finally decide upon a major–it also helped me to become more connected to my inner being and more sure of the direction that I wanted my life to take.

Now, as the years have passed and my life has evolved, I understand the value of asking good questions when it comes to creating a FabYOUlous life. I know from experience, that when things are hard and life seems bleak, it is often because we are not asking ourselves the right questions and therefore not allowing ourselves to see all of the options available to us. I mean think about it–when times are hard and you seek counseling, what is it that counselors do? They ask questions, and in so doing, help you to discover for yourself, the correct path out of your difficult situation.

Because I am such a proponent of asking questions as a means of self discovery. I have created a series of questions that, when answered, will help you to gain clarity on the things that are important to you. Answering these questions will provide you with valuable insight into your values, aspirations, strengths and desires. I have designed these questions into downloadable printables that will be available at the first of each new month. These questions will be beneficial to you as you use them to delve deeper into your own psyche (for maximum benefit, I would suggest using the questions as daily journaling prompts) but it might also be fun to share these questions with your spouse or family members.  Who knows what valuable new insights might be gained by hearing their answers.

The questions for January 2016 are in the image below but you can also click here for a printable version.