by Paul Quinn | Oct 6, 2025 | Communication Skills, Workplace Etiquette
Photo by Timur Weber In my book, The Big Ask, I devote a chapter to the art of conversation and how questions can connect us to each other. But what if it backfires? What if your thoughtfully engaging questions ensnare you in someone’s ponderous plot summaries of...
by Paul Quinn | Jul 1, 2025 | Asking - Relationships, Human Behavior, Personal Development, Relationships
Can taking time to ask personal questions enrich our relationships—whether with friends, neighbors, family members, romantic partners, coworkers, or strangers in passing? That’s one of the questions I pose in my book, The Big Ask. But the bigger question, the...
by Paul Quinn | Jun 24, 2025 | Asking - Cultural Attitudes, Communication Skills
There’s a dramatic moment in the British film Living in which Mr. Williams, a soft-spoken public works employee played by Bill Nighy, approaches his superior, Sir James, who’s refused his requests to turn a sewage-filled abandoned lot into a children’s...
by Paul Quinn | Mar 20, 2022 | Asking - Empowerment, Asking - Theatre & Film
For people who are unafraid to ask, the world is filled with possibilities. For one such person, an adventurous spirit and a series of asks fast-tracked her from her home in the Midwest to the television studios of Los Angeles. In her 30s, Margaret Moira...
by Paul Quinn | Mar 18, 2022 | Uncategorized
More than anything, Raven Anne Lucas wanted to be a healer. A career in massage therapy beckoned. Though she and her husband were employed, a mortgage and high school-aged child made challenging the $3,000 down payment for massage school. Even so, Raven Anne figured...
