You know what goals are right? Goals are the things that we want, and they are our focus. However, we don’t always complete them. There are times when you forget to write the essay and so get a C in math. Yet even though my target grade rests 30% above my actual grade, there are things I can do to change reality actively. The best tool we have in our toolbelt, to get what we want, is the word, “why?”

In a world driven by answers, we forget that the true power lies in the questions we ask. Thinking about the why solves problems and allows you to understand the situation you’re in to make the best moves possible. Let me give you an example of what not to do from the play Othello:

DESDEMONA  A man that all his time

Hath founded his good fortunes on your love;

Shared dangers with you—

OTHELLO

The handkerchief!

DESDEMONA  I’ faith, you are to blame.

OTHELLO  Zounds! (Othello, 3.4.110-115)

Here, Othello interjects to yell at Desdemona and this is a bad move for two reasons. One: by yelling at Desdemona, he subconsciously ramps himself up which decreases the odds of making any resolution in the future. Two: he misses the opportunity to understand what’s really going on by simply having a conversation with his wife. Othello got comfortable letting his emotions run loose and so is punished with the death of his wife later on. If Othello thought about alternative explanations or questioned the credibility of Iago’s claims, he would’ve been in a better situation. This is the perfect example of an unknown unknown.

With an “unknown unknown,” I don’t even know what questions to ask, let alone how to answer those questions. – David Dunning

Faced with an unknown unknown, you are cornered. You don’t even know that you’re doing something wrong. I mean, how do you expect to jump the gaps when you don’t even know they exist? Othello didn’t know there were traps set up by Iago and so fell right through the floor. This is an awful situation because you’re so severely handicapped, that you can’t fix your mistakes to get a better result in the future. However, when you question and think, you can work out what’s going wrong. You can convert these unknown unknowns to known unknowns.

<- a character taking off his blindfold

By taking off the blindfold you can start playing the game knowing that the hidden trap doors exist. With this knowledge, you face problems with more caution and thought, being more likely to solve problems. As Doc Daniels said, “It’s just the connection.”  The connections you make is the real value of questions. Questions help you gage the place you’re in to start moving in the right direction. After all, the first step to get what you want to is to acknowledge that you want it.