Ask the "What, Why, and How" Questions
Right now you probably have a dozen or more browser tabs open, an email inbox full of newsletters you don’t remember subscribing to, and a social media feed you’ve scrolled for ten minutes without saving a single thing. That’s a normal day for each of us now. The information keeps coming, and most of it flies by us without leaving an impression.
How do you decide what to click into and consume? And how do you know what to do (if anything) with the content you do decide to actually spend time with beyond glancing at the headline? One framework I’ve been trying to apply is a quick “What, Why, and How” filter to the information that flows my way.
Priorities First
Before we get to these three filters, it’s important to be clear about your priorities. Specifically, name the areas you care most about and want to learn more about. These could be specific to your work, company, and industry. They can also be personal areas of interest like becoming a better parent, pursuing a healthier lifestyle, or following your favorite NBA team.
Whatever makes your list, write them down. Then work to let all the other stuff hitting your inbox whiz right by, all the “noise” that doesn’t apply to these priorities. Yes, this is easier said than done given the persistent flow of information, much of which you may not have even explicitly signed up to consume.
This prioritization effort creates your “strike zone.” Think of it like a hitter in the batter’s box. A good hitter doesn’t swing at every pitch. They know their zone, they take pitches, and hunt for the pitch they can actually drive. Your inboxes and feeds are throwing you pitches all day long, and most of them you should let go by. Define your strike zone first, and then select the “content” pitches you swing at. Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to apply the “What, Why, and How” filtering.
What?
Read the post or watch the video you clicked on and ask yourself “What is this information telling me?” Too often we mindlessly consume content that might be relevant to an area important to us, but we don’t really process what it’s telling us. We don’t read or watch in a focused way and therefore information doesn’t get imprinted in our brain.
Say you’re a product manager and you’re watching a video about the way AI is potentially changing the software development lifecycle (SDLC). Do you know what your organization’s current SDLC looks like and can you then compare what this video is telling you about how the process may be changing? After the video can you list out what new angle or elements you just learned about?
When you finish a video or an article, stop and answer one question before you move on: “What did I just learn?”
Why?
After the “What”, ask the next question, “Why does this information matter to me?” You’ve just learned something new (hopefully), so now it’s about putting it into a context that lines up with your priorities.
Stay with our product manager example. You just learned about how AI is impacting the SDLC and now it’s about reflecting on why this matters to you in your role as a PM and ultimately to why changes to the SDLC matter to your organization.
This is where you need to zoom out and revisit where the SDLC fits into the big picture for you and your company. “Why does our SDLC matter and how does it impact the long term success of our organization?” Doing this broadens the “why” question in a way that gives you the full scope you need when you then ask the “How” question.
How?
Once you’ve fully processed the “What” and “Why” questions related to that video or article, you’re ready to ask the most important question, “How do I apply this information to one of my work or personal priorities?” This is where the return on investment comes from what you just learned.
Now the product manager’s “How” question might become, “How should we change our SDLC process given the role AI might play in it?” You may even ask a more personal question like, “How does what I do in my role as a PM need to change given what AI allows me to do?”
The “How” questions are the ones that matter most. They’re where the payoff lives. All the work you put into prioritizing what matters, and all the reflection you place on the “What” and “Why,” questions exists to set up your “How” questions.
Try It Out
Give the “What, Why, and How” framework a shot, and tweak it to fit how you work. But stay focused on the key point that the “How” questions are where you earn the big gains. All the time you spend consuming content only pays off when it positively changes something you actually do. If you don’t get all the way through the “How” step you’ve just wasted twenty minutes or more consuming something that doesn’t leave a mark. However, answer the “How” question and that time spent makes you better in your work or life.
NextPlay>Forward AI Disclaimer: I very actively use artificial intelligence and large language models to generate the content you read here, but I do review it and edit it to make sure it can be generally useful to people who read it. Keep in mind that AI can make mistakes - check important information. Let me know if I make any errors and I will correct them.