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Yesterday I noticed a lot of interest in and chatter about the article in the London Telegraph identifying the Greatest 101 Questions of All Time which will be featured in the March issue of BBC Focus magazine. This on the heels of David Armano’s excellent post, Questions About Questions. In it, he does a wonderful job of explaining the importance of asking the right question for what you are trying to discover.

I know I’m missing a whole host of resources here, but these two current articles got me thinking.

As strategic marketers, account planners and just a generally curious lot, we really should be some of the best questioners around.

Why can’t we put something together that would be of value to everyone involved and develop a list of the Greatest Planning Questions of All Time?

No need to give away any shop secrets, but what inquiries have you made that really got to the heart of the matter at hand? Are there standbys that you turn to to get a group talking? Did someone else come up with the question that caused you to catch your breath?

Each focus group, customer interview or client planning session will be different. There’s no way to capture the context and subtlety of specific projects. Rather, this exercise might be most powerful if kept to broad conversation starters.

Add. Subtract. Pan me as a hack. Whatever you’d like.

The comment floor is open.

I’ll start:

• If your company was a celebrity, living or dead, who would it be and why?
• If your company was an animal, which one would it be and why? (trying to get the cliches out of the way early…I promise not to go to “tree”)
• Tell me about the last time a company truly surprised you.
• What is the one thing you won’t compromise?
• What is your favorite word? (I’m starting to feel like James Lipton)
• If you were queen/king for the day, and could change one thing about (brand), what would it be and why?
• Where do you do your most productive thinking?

2008 will be much better than 2007.

Has to be.

The girls and I just put together our resolutions for the coming year. It is quite an exercise to explain the concept of “resolutions” to a four-year-old. The nice thing is that going through this process tonight has reminded me of the power of simplicity and the importance of periodically taking stock.

I’ve certainly got a ton of things I can do professionally to make me better at what I do. It’s nice that I’ve just had my annual performance review to give me a clear report card. But, for my youngest, I just needed to boil down the concept to its essence.

“We’re just trying to do something to make ourselves better people, honey.”

That’s it.

The action needed to realize this promise can be large or small, but in the end, we’re aiming for improvement. In many ways, this is a tidy parallel to what we’re doing for our clients. We’re asking customers to do one thing. That’s it. Right?

As I turn the page on ‘07, I am glad to see a fresh slate before me. 365 open blocks of time to clarify and simplify. 12 months to take both large and small actions with a goal of improvement.

2008 will be much better than 2007.

There’s no question in my mind.

Questions are important to me. Like staying up all night for my project the other night, I hope I never take curiosity for granted. Lately, my questions have verged on the existential. Nothing new for a fellow in the waning days of his third decade.

Northern Planner had an interesting post on why we choose this business. I admire his optimism and his altruistic belief. I’ve noticed that is a pattern for him. He seems like a glass-half-full person.

For me, the reason is more specific and somewhat selfish. I see the moment of revelation — the connection you build with someone where the light bulb goes off — as almost narcotic. Lights in the eyes because of a great strategy. A relationship with a customer where they see value. That’s fun and that’s what keeps me coming back every day.

That’s what keeps me asking the questions. Trying to get to the bottom (or top) of something so that I can see that moment of understanding again. It’s worth all the bruises and scrapes.

Sometimes it takes reminding myself of that point.