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20 Questions That Will Make You A Better Person
What does it mean to be a good person?
Surely we can’t posit what it is to be a better person if we haven’t established what we’re aiming for. Though people have debated the idea for centuries, any conclusive answers are usually more temporarily agreed upon social norms than universally accepted principles. Despite this, some polls say that being a “better person” triumphed as the most popular resolution of 2018, even over shrinking waistlines or expanding paychecks. It seems that we all aspire to be “better,” but what is it that we’re trying to be better at?
For our purposes, we’ll say that “better” is becoming more aware of our motives, being less judgmental where we could stand to be empathetic, and becoming more concerned with the wellbeing of the others than our own self-interested pursuits. To be better is to care for others as we would want to be cared for, to sow only that which we would want to reap.
The following questions are designed to inch you further into self-awareness. They are meant to unnerve you, unleash you, and then perhaps, unstitch you a bit. They are meant to probe your mind and help you consider life outside of the vantage point of your temporary wants. They are 20 questions that yolk a wisdom which, if applied, would make you a better person – or perhaps, the person you’ve needed to become.
1. What, or who, is worth suffering for?
2. What can my most aggressive judgments of others tell me about myself?
3. Are my opinions of others fixed, or do they evolve? Is that fair?
4. If I could meet the best possible version of myself in an alternate reality, what would that person be like?
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5. Do I more often verbalize what I believe, or what I know others will agree with?
6. If I were to die next week, what would be the resounding sentiment shared at my funeral?
7. If I could create anything I wanted in life – be it wealth, romance, or success – but could never use social media again to show it to anyone, how would I choose to live?
8. Does my daily routine reflect my long-term goals?
9. What do the things I envy in others tell me about what I really want to give myself?
10. If I could wake up tomorrow 5 years in the past – knowing all that I do now – what would I do differently?
11. What do I do to avoid discomfort?
12. What are a few painful experiences I swore I’d never get past? How did I?
13. What would it take to release my anger? With whom do I need to make amends?
14. What did the people who hurt me most in life ultimately teach me?
15. Do I embody the qualities of the person that I always dreamed of marrying?
16. At the end of my life when I look back on all I have done, what will stand out as having been important? What would I wish I had cared less about?
17. What is the most common way I self-sabotage? What does it tell me about my unmet needs?
18. If I had to leave the country and could only bring one box, what would I put in it?
19. What anonymous acts of kindness could I integrate into my daily life?
20. What would it take to become the hero I’ve spent my life waiting for?