Mind Performance Hacks

Hack #63. Interview Yourself

Use interviewing techniques as part of your search strategy for solutions to problems. In particular, understand how interviewers use open and closed questions, and use this knowledge to keep your own search on track.

Interviewers have a range of well-honed techniques that they use to gather information. You can apply the psychology of interviewing to yourself to gain perspective on your own thinking, particularly where you need to make a decision.

In Action

Start with an objective, a choice or decision that you need to make, in which the right decision is far from clear. A decision that has many competing factors to consider is ideal. This decision is to be the focus of the exercise. You'll be gathering information from yourself that will help you make that decision. It's a bit tricky, because you'll be playing the role of both interviewer and interviewee.

Find somewhere comfortable enough to sit, but not the most comfortable chair in the house, and have a pad of paper to make notes on. If you've already collected some written information, quickly scan through it to remind yourself of what you already have.

Start out with easy questions to which you know the answers and, ideally, feel good about. The questions need to be related to the overall objective, but the purpose of asking them is to warm up and get answers coming easily.

As you get into this, gradually switch to deeper questions. The questions should be prompting you to think about different aspects ...