questions

Ever feel like you want to ask a question, but you hold back because you think the question is stupid or you will look silly asking it? In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton discuss getting past those barriers that keep us from asking what’s on our mind.

We have all been there: a question pops into out head, but then so does the self-doubt. We fear that others will find the question stupid or elementary, and we will look foolish if we ask it. So we clam up and fervently hope that someone else will pipe up with the same query.

How can we get past that feeling that our questions are dumb?

Ed says all of us could stand to develop a little “intellectual bravado” when it comes to learning and asking questions.

What’s “intellectual bravado?”

“Intellectual bravado means that you’re brave enough to explore the outer limits of your own thinking or other people’s thinking,” says Ed, ” and you are not afraid to go beyond and to maybe be in a place that’s a little bit uncomfortable or a little bit awkward or that’s new.”

Ed says one way to get braver asking questions is to understand that questions do not need to be exceedingly sophisticated or complicated. Sometimes, he says, simple questions are the most profound.

“If we were brave enough to actually ask what seems like a foundational or fundamental question,” Ed asserts, “we actually will go deeper even though it might sound silly at first.”

Ed says a tremendous payoff results from investing more in a presentation, activity or conversation by asking questions.

“We get more out of life’s experience when we actually know we’re going to a – create a question; and b – actually going to ask it,” says Ed.

What event in Ed’s life freed him to feel like he could ask questions without fear? Listen to the full episode to find out, and to hear this week’s unusual take on a puzzler. It may prompt some questions in you!

This episode was recorded on Dec. 4, 2018.

We all face questions in life that seem just about impossible to answer. Maybe it’s a really tough question on a test. Or maybe it’s a challenging assignment at work. What can we do when the answer just won’t come to us? How about not answering the question? In this episode of KUT’s podcast Higher Ed, KUT’s Jennifer Stayton and Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger explore ways to break down seemingly impossible questions into manageable parts. So just to be clear, the advice here is not to ignore the question. But Ed advocates starting by breaking down a hard question into a simpler one in a parallel vein, or translating it into a known, easier question.  Ed and Jennifer discuss how this technique can be used in or outside of academic settings. Wondering if you should listen on to hear more? That’s a definite yes! By the way, this episode’s technique might be useful in solving it. Remember, it’s the puzzler that assumes three = 1/2 of five !

This episode was recorded on November 22, 2016.

The old saying goes something like this: “If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around to hear it it, does it make a sound?” A variation on that might go: “If someone asks a question, and no one is around to hear it, what good does it do?” A lot, as it turns out. In this episode of KUT’s podcast Higher Ed, Jennifer Stayton and Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger exchange questions and answers about the art and importance of questions to learning. They explore how the act of simply creating a question can change the whole dynamic of learning. But what about the answer, you might ask? Guess what; most of the benefit might actually come without ever even getting answer!