Q&A for How to Ask Open Ended Questions

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Is this an open ended question?: "What was your most memorable moment as a nurse?"

Community Answer

Yes, it is because it encourages thought exploration about the person's career and experiences. It's not a yes/no question.

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Question

What are some examples of questions I can ask after saying hello?

Joseph Pellone

Community Answer

How are things? What do you think of...? How was work/school today? How is your course going? What's for dinner tonight?

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Question

How would open ended questions help create opportunities for members to participate in a meeting?

Community Answer

Since open-ended questions require more than simply "yes" or "no" answers, they provide the opportunity for meeting participants to share and elaborate thoughts they might not otherwise have the opportunity to, especially if the person leading the meeting expresses a sincere desire to hear everyone's ideas in advance of asking such questions.

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Question

What are some questions to ask a customer who is trying to find a gift?

Community Answer

Who is the gift for? What is the occasion? Does the person have any hobbies, collections, interests, etc.? Favorite food or drinks? Favorite color (if you are selling clothing or home decor)?

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Question

How can you ask open ended questions to children who are at risk?

Community Answer

Ask them about things they may like, such as cartoons, video games, sports, school, friends, etc. Eventually they may start to feel more comfortable with you.

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Question

What open-ended questions could I ask a toddler?

Community Answer

"What kind of toys do you like?" "Who is your best friend?" "What is the funniest moment you've had with your friends?" "What sports do you like most?" "What is your favorite thing about playing sports?" "What do you like best about school?"

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Question

What open-ended questions can I ask someone whom I just met?

Community Answer

"What do you do for a living?" "Where are you from?" "Where did you go to school?" "What do you like to do for fun?"

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Question

What open question could I ask a disengaged client to get them talking about the things they like about themselves or are most proud in their life?

Community Answer

What do you like doing that makes you feel good? What is your fondest memory? Tell me about your loved ones.

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Question

Can I use both open-ended and closed-ended questions in a questionnaire?

Community Answer

Yes. If you are looking for a specific response, start out with an open-ended question to get details. When you have the information you are looking for, ask a closed-ended question.

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Question

How do I ask open ended questions when selling things?

Michelle Grigsby

Community Answer

Here's a great tip someone gave me: "On a scale of 1-10, how interested are you about______?" And when they give you a number, you simply ask them to clarify... Here's an example: On a scale of 1-10, how interested are you in having a party?(direct selling) (she said 2). Most people would think, "crap. she won't have a party"... But you say, "Why do you say 2?" "Oh, I'm new to town and I don't really know anybody here yet". Now you can work with that instead of just assuming they aren't interested... Make sense?

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Question

What happens if I do ask an open-ended question, but get a closed-ended response?

Community Answer

Then ask another open-ended question more specific to that subject. Ex: Question 1: How was school today? Answer 1: Good. Question 2: What subject are you writing about this week?

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Question

How can I ask open-ended questions without making the question feel too personal or awkward?

Community Answer

Include a smooth transition to the question, if possible, to make it not so blunt. Then, try to keep it simple, and not as probing as a normal open-ended question would be.

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