Curated Questions: Conversations Celebrating the Power of Questions!

Ken Woodward
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Curated Questions: Conversations Celebrating the Power of Questions Hosted by Ken Woodward, Curated Questions is a thought-provoking podcast that celebrates the art and science of asking profound questions. This podcast is for curious minds who understand that the right question can unlock new perspectives and drive personal growth. What to Expect Insightful Conversations: Experts from diverse fields share their journey in mastering the craft of inquiry, revealing how it has transformed their lives and careers. Practical Techniques: Gain valuable skills to improve your questioning abilities, applicable in both personal and professional settings. Thought-Provoking Topics: Explore how questions shape leadership, personal transformation, and societal discourse. Why Listen? In an age of abundant information, Curated Questions reminds us that true wisdom lies in asking better questions. This podcast will help you: 1. Enhance critical thinking 2. Improve communication 3. Gain new perspectives on complex issues 4. Develop a nuanced understanding of the world Join Ken Woodward and his guests as they explore the transformative power of thoughtful inquiry. Curated Questions is more than just a podcast – it's an invitation to embrace curiosity, challenge assumptions, and unlock your full potential through the art of asking better questions. Subscribe now and embark on a journey to master the craft of inquiry, one question at a time. Website: CuratedQuestions.com IG/Threads/YouTube: @CuratedQuestions

  1. Who Benefits From Me Believing This? | Andrew Caulk #79

    5D AGO

    Who Benefits From Me Believing This? | Andrew Caulk #79

    "It is easier simply to tell the truth, even if you've made a mistake, because what it does is build credibility over time." - Andrew Caulk What happens when the questions leaders most need to ask are the ones they're most afraid to voice? Andrew Caulk spent two decades in the Air Force as an information strategist, and he's seen how institutions, military, political, and personal, manage their narratives by avoiding the hardest inquiries. In this conversation, Andrew and Ken explore how misinformation and disinformation actually work, why truth is more strategically sustainable than deception, and how the attention economy is quietly rewiring our ability to think slowly. Andrew shares what senior leaders refused to ask aloud in military war games, what the casualty projections for a Taiwan conflict actually look like, and why American will to fight may be the most underexamined variable in geopolitical strategy. The conversation also turns to children, curiosity, and how the questions we allow, or suppress, in our homes shape the next generation's capacity to navigate a noisy world. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions?)) Keep questioning! Resources Mentioned  Cognitive Strategy Group  Right to Forget Law Helio Fred Garcia Inside The  Manosphere documentary  Battlefield Three  Ad Fontis Media Bias Chart  Trust Me, I'm Lying by Ryan Holiday Anchorman 2  Bloomberg Wall Street Journal Associated Press (AP) Reuters The Economist  SCOTUSblog  Freakonomics Ground News  Planet Word Museum  cognitive strategy group.com  Being Human Church  Dr. Kori Schake Jim Mattis Andrew Caulk on LinkedIn Producer Ben Ford Beauty Pill

    1h 57m
  2. The Question Asked in the Wrong Room | Ken Woodward #78

    APR 9

    The Question Asked in the Wrong Room | Ken Woodward #78

    "Those scripts are not wisdom. They are load-bearing walls for other people's power." - Ken Woodward Every room has a question nobody asks. Sometimes that's a failure of courage. Sometimes it's something else entirely, a hierarchy so explicit it pre-sorts who is permitted to speak before anyone opens their mouth. In this episode, Ken reflects on a $100M federal acquisition program derailed by a senior stakeholder who wielded disruption as a weapon. The question that could have changed the outcome existed. It just never reached the person who needed to hear it. Drawing on that experience, a chance conversation with a Vietnamese businessman named Kien, and the current civic moment, Ken explores why we swallow necessary questions, and what it costs us when we do. He offers a ladder of micro-courage for asking harder questions at every level of power, from the private to the public square. One braver question. That's the practice. That's where it starts. Fellow pilgrims, this one's for the rooms we've all been in. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning!

    22 min
  3. The Questions We Didn't Ask Our Grandmothers | Jenny Chan #77

    APR 2

    The Questions We Didn't Ask Our Grandmothers | Jenny Chan #77

    "The most powerful questions aren't really the ones that demand an answer, but really demand a presence." - Jenny Chan Jenny Chan founded Pacific Atrocities Education after her grandmother's death surfaced a box of wartime relics of military yen, rice rationing coupons, and decades of unexplained anger toward Japanese culture. That inheritance of unasked questions launched Jenny into the hidden history of the Pacific Asian War: comfort women, Unit 731's biological experimentation program, and the postwar immunity deals that let war criminals become CEOs and prime ministers. Jenny's research method centers on presence before inquiry. Sitting with survivors long enough to earn the right to ask hard questions. She sees historical memory not as a burden but as an essential context for understanding today's geopolitical decisions. Her work with survivors, students, and Japanese citizens seeking truth suggests that healing begins when forgotten stories are finally allowed to be told. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions?)) Keep questioning!

    1h 10m
  4. The Questions You're Living Inside: How to Stop Answering Questions You Never Chose-Ken Woodward #76

    MAR 26

    The Questions You're Living Inside: How to Stop Answering Questions You Never Chose-Ken Woodward #76

    "The harm was architectural. It was not a matter of intention. It was a matter of never checking the blueprint before I opened my mouth." - Ken Woodward The Questions You're Living Inside: How to Stop Answering Questions You Never Chose is the premise of this week's solo episode. Every question builds a room. Most of us never notice the construction. In this solo episode, Ken Woodward explores what he calls the architecture of questions, the load-bearing assumptions embedded in every question we ask, answer, or inherit. Using a morning commute observation about a flatbed truck carrying prefabricated wall panels, Ken unpacks why the questions shaping our lives were often built by someone else, for someone else's benefit. Through two anchor stories, a painful misheard exchange during his 2,085-mile walk through Washington D.C., and an emotional moment from his conversation with Naomi Campbell of the Right Question Institute, Ken traces the difference between a question's skeleton and its resonance. The invitation is not demolition. It is something prior to answering. Read the blueprint first. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning!

    23 min
  5. It's Not The Answers — It's Having the Questions | Phil Liebman #75

    MAR 19

    It's Not The Answers — It's Having the Questions | Phil Liebman #75

    "It's not having the answers I teach people — it's having the questions. And that just upsets the entire architecture of safe thinking." - Phil Liebman Phil Liebman spent years being mentored by one of the most relentless questioners he'd ever encountered. It changed everything about how he leads and coaches. In this conversation, Phil unpacks the difference between knowing mode and learning mode, why most of us were systematically educated out of curiosity, and what it actually takes to form a powerful question. He introduces his cycle of curiosity and certainty, a four-quadrant framework that explains why three-quarters of the best thinking happens before any action is taken. Phil shares hard-won lessons from decades of executive coaching, traces his intellectual foundation back to mentor Dr. Lee Thayer, and makes the case that leadership is a performing art, not a management science. The episode closes with a personal health scare that became an unexpected masterclass in what curiosity can do when fear shows up uninvited. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning! Resources Mentioned ALPS Leadership (https://alpsleadership.com/) Dr. Lee Thayer (https://thethayerinstitute.org/about-us/) Vistage (https://www.vistage.com/) Lynn Borton - Choose to Be Curious podcast (https://lynnborton.com/) Stony Brook University (https://www.stonybrook.edu/) Elon Musk (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elon_Musk) John Cleese (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cleese) Grace Hopper (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Hopper) Leonardo da Vinci quote: "It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sit back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." Pablo Picasso (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pablo_Picasso) Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center (https://www.msmc.com/comprehensive-cancer-center/) Phil Liebman on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/philiprliebman) Producer Ben Ford (https://www.producerbenford.com/) Beauty Pill (https://www.beautypill.com/)

    1h 29m
  6. How Questions Can Save A Fractured Democracy | Eila Park Robertson #74

    MAR 12

    How Questions Can Save A Fractured Democracy | Eila Park Robertson #74

    "Lean into courage and see what happens." - Eila Park Robertson Former ABC News journalist, award‑winning filmmaker, and crisis communications strategist Eila Park Robertson joins Curated Questions to explore what happens “when listening saves democracy.” Drawing from a childhood navigating violence, immigration, and loneliness, Eila shares how asking genuine questions became her superpower for building trust with people who would never normally talk to the media. She explains why Western culture has forgotten how to listen, how that loss feeds polarization, and what it really takes to build bridges across political and ideological divides, starting with presence, curiosity, and courage. Eila and Ken dive into introverts as secret leaders of the room, why outrage‑only politics is burning us out, and how personal relationships can transform deeply held beliefs. They also explore climate storytelling, South Korea’s fight against authoritarianism, and practical ways to resist despair and rebuild community in an age of fractured attention. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning! Resources Mentioned ABC News Anecdotia Vogue Magazine Wedding Article Diane Sawyers Barbara Walters Muammar Gaddafi Mel Gibson Ziwe Fumudoh Dr. Jane Goodall International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Azzedine Downes, CEO IFAW United Nations Kelly Boesch Eila on Instagram (@eila2.2) Producer Ben Ford Beauty Pill

    1h 37m
  7. Mortar & Pestle: The Fragrance Of An Intentional Life | Ken Woodward #73

    MAR 5

    Mortar & Pestle: The Fragrance Of An Intentional Life | Ken Woodward #73

    "There's a difference between avoidance and stewardship of our own attention." - Ken Woodward When life grinds us down, something essential is revealed. In this solo episode, Ken Woodward explores why questions are the fundamental technology humans use to make sense of a world that has broken wide open. Drawing from a personal essay about growing up in rural Arizona and the disorienting experience of having a lifelong worldview bubble pop, Ken examines the overwhelming flood of inputs modern life delivers and why not every question in that flood is yours to carry. He contrasts two kinds of wisdom, the certainty-hardened and the question-exhausted, and makes the case that the most meaningful conversations happen with people who have crossed a difficult threshold and been changed by it. The grinding of life, like a mortar and pestle, doesn't destroy us. It reveals us. The fragrance was always there, waiting. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning!

    19 min
  8. The Alchemy of Questions: What Defended Answers Cost | Ken Woodward #72

    FEB 26

    The Alchemy of Questions: What Defended Answers Cost | Ken Woodward #72

    "Every deflection is a small tax." - Ken Woodward In this solo episode of Curated Questions, Ken Woodward explores the hidden cost of defended answers and the quiet exhaustion that comes from maintaining stories that no longer fit. Drawing on conversations with Kevin Kelly and Phil Liebman, he examines the difference between exploitation and exploration, and why deep questioning is inherently inefficient. Through metaphors of strip mining, sinkholes, and live wires, Ken shows how cultures and individuals enforce authorized stopping points that keep conversations at the surface. A personal story about a pivotal career decision illustrates how a single honest answer can release stored energy and create unexpected freedom. The alchemy of questions is not about uncovering better information. It is about creating conditions where truth costs less than performance. When we stay past discomfort and refuse to stop too soon, something shifts. The energy returns. That return is liberation. This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions) Keep questioning! Resources Mentioned Kevin Kelly Wired Magazine Condé Nast Phil Liebman Producer Ben Ford Beauty Pill

    22 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

Curated Questions: Conversations Celebrating the Power of Questions Hosted by Ken Woodward, Curated Questions is a thought-provoking podcast that celebrates the art and science of asking profound questions. This podcast is for curious minds who understand that the right question can unlock new perspectives and drive personal growth. What to Expect Insightful Conversations: Experts from diverse fields share their journey in mastering the craft of inquiry, revealing how it has transformed their lives and careers. Practical Techniques: Gain valuable skills to improve your questioning abilities, applicable in both personal and professional settings. Thought-Provoking Topics: Explore how questions shape leadership, personal transformation, and societal discourse. Why Listen? In an age of abundant information, Curated Questions reminds us that true wisdom lies in asking better questions. This podcast will help you: 1. Enhance critical thinking 2. Improve communication 3. Gain new perspectives on complex issues 4. Develop a nuanced understanding of the world Join Ken Woodward and his guests as they explore the transformative power of thoughtful inquiry. Curated Questions is more than just a podcast – it's an invitation to embrace curiosity, challenge assumptions, and unlock your full potential through the art of asking better questions. Subscribe now and embark on a journey to master the craft of inquiry, one question at a time. Website: CuratedQuestions.com IG/Threads/YouTube: @CuratedQuestions

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