Checklist: questions that actually get answered

Checklist: questions that actually get answered
Most posts end with a question nobody answers, and then people conclude their audience is quiet. The audience is fine. The question was bad.
A question gets answers when:
— It can be answered from experience rather than research. Nobody will go and look something up for your engagement.
— It is narrow. Broad questions feel like an essay assignment.
— It offers a choice. Two named options beat an open field, because picking is easier than composing.
— It has no obviously correct answer. If there is a right answer, replying feels like sitting a test.
— It does not require admitting incompetence in public. Reframe it as "what did you do before you knew this" and people will tell you everything.
— It is one question. Three questions gets you zero answers.
The test: could you answer it yourself, in one sentence, right now, off the top of your head? If not, neither can they.