Asking questions on WA - How to get the Best Answers!

byJacquie8

782 followers

Updated 4 years ago

"It's not the answer that enlightens, but the Question" - Ken Coleman

One of the most amazing things I've noticed here on WA, is how quickly my questions get answered. This is such a valuable aspect of being here on WA, as I know from past experience, getting these answers would not only have taken me a lot longer, but could at times cost me money in buying courses or paying an expert to help (and then sometimes I haven't actually got the answer I needed).

Also, because I have been attempting to answer the questions of others, I have found that I have further solidified what I have only just recently learnt, by attempting clear explanations, and make good summaries. I feel confident there will be others coming along to either give further clarification (which is also further learning while on topic to me) and to confirm any part of what I got right.

As I peruse the questions of others, I have noticed that some are getting faster replies than others.

I've also noticed, that when I have answered some questions, it can be a little difficult to go back and get an update, or to find the original conversation, depending on where the question has been posted.

Scared to ask your question?

On a couple of rare occasions here, I've noticed some people getting rather abrupt or negative responses to their questions.

For this I want to say its important to remember:

"They who ask a question remain a fool for 5 minutes, they who do not ask remain a fool FOREVER"

So if you're a newbie here like me, I wanted to share a few things I've noticed to help us all progress faster and have a more enjoyable experience.

Where to post your Questions?

Firstly, I have found that I get the most outstanding, fully relevant answers and perspectives, when I post my question in my profile area. Because you need to also add a relevant class, what you find is that question seems to be answered by virtual experts and people interested in that topic area.

I've noticed that questions posted under trainings in the main courses, may or may not be identified well as a question, and even if they are, just don't seem to get the traction that questions posted on your profile seem to get.

Have others found this as well?

How to find the questions you've been following.

For some questions and answers, sometimes I want to go back and find them, but when they've been posted in various threads, I'm forgetting where they were.

This has led me to only just realising that my notifications were a little overwhelming, and when searching through them, there is only so much history to scroll through. I've just recently worked out I can change the options for what shows up, effectively providing a filter I can use to help with this.... I've been functioning thus far with all of them ticked.

So I've just started playing around with these filters.

In this same area, I have just realised I can change change the options under the views sections as read or unread:

And now I realise in the actions button I can mark as read as well as be moved from the discussion:

This all gives me options to help find previous discussions and get back to them, but also helps me to focus on what my current objective is.

The Resource Center and searching for yourself.

There is nothing better than finding... or at least attempting to find the answers yourself. It's such a satisfying feeling to answer your own questions. Even if you only try to find it but don't quite make it, when you finally ask the question, if you still need to, you will be better equipped to find the right words and be more specific with your question.

I think this quote is helpful here:

"Asking the right question takes as much skill as giving the right answers" - Robert Half

The resource center is quite helpful for this.

Also, I'm finding that just going through the backend of my website, attempting to tweak and change things myself is one of the best ways to familiarise myself with all of it. When I finally ask - I'm more focussed on what I really need to know or find.

Think of it as an experiment... and I don't think we have to worry too much about things breaking while playing around in the dashboard and the theme/plugin options etc... so long as we're following the training and taking those steps explained. (well I guess going into the code and making mistakes with SEO settings etc could be a little bad for your site... but this is covered clearly in the training). I wouldn't skip over any of it, even if you're already quite familiar with it.

Peruse the extra Courses!

Wow, this is a part of WA that I noticed at first, before I went Premium and didn't have acces to it. I recall it was one of the major motivators to go Premium, but then forgot temporarily as I started going through the training. There is so much extra training, placed in various categories that is likely to cover what you want to know.

Just go to the wealth of extras in Training HQ and Classrooms to see if there are topics that relate to your questions there.

The Help Center

Finally, there is the help Center, which is a great place to go ... and fairly self explanatory. Ask a quick question in the best places to ask questions.

I know I also came across the handy tasks section for those who have referrals to WA, but I can see that is beyond where I am as yet!!

Asking questions in a Blog Post.

I've noticed that a couple of people have asked questions in a blog post from their own profile. From what I can see, this is not the best place to ask, and it won't be so obvious to other members. If you're just new here, and it is one of your first blog posts, you won't get as many readers being notified of the question or even capable of noticing it.

It may be better to leave blog posts for sharing some insight or success, and ask a relevant question at the end on the topic.

Letting others know you're also following the question!

I especially thank Jeff for demonstrating this!

I've noticed and totally relate to being a little cautious when trying to ask a question, but not quite having the insight or the words to even know how to word it! It can also sometimes be difficult to ask when you think it might be a really dumb question and that others might criticise you for it. (like I said it seems very rare, and sometimes comments or answers can be misconstrued as well).

So if you see a question you think could also help you out, or you think it is close to what you're wondering about, there is nothing from stopping you from supportively entering into the conversation, even playing with the wording of the questions to help give more insight, and to also let the original question asker know you're enthusiastically waiting for the answer as well.

If you share why you need to know the answer and what you have tried, even that can help shed some light and not only help others, but help yourself to go over the steps of getting to the right answer.

Please give some more insights!

So, I know there is probably more insight to this, but as I had missed these little tips and insights in my first week at WA, I thought I would share these "Aha's " I've just had, in case there was anyone else in this position!

Best of luck with all your Questions and Answers, as this for me is the most magical part of WA so far, and what is helping me to learn and grow much faster than I thought!

Let me know if you have any more hints and tricks for making the most out of asking questions and giving answers in Wealthy Affiliate! I'm so keen to hear!!

Thank you so much to all of you who have both answered my questions and let me know they were wondering that too, because it does help to give more confidence in asking even more questions.

Best wishes,

Jacquie