Got 10 questions? A guide to choosing which ones to answer first

You don't have to answer them all, but where do you start?

Once your question box gets going, you may get 10, even 20 questions a week. It's hard to find time to answer all of them. But without a standard for which questions to pick and which to skip, you'll struggle every time.

You could answer them in order from the top, but then fun questions get buried at the back, or similar questions come one after another. Choosing a little more strategically can change the value you give your followers, even with the same amount of time.

If you sort your questions using the 3 criteria below, you should hesitate less.

Criterion 1: Put the questions you want to answer first

The first criterion to value is your own gut feeling. Look at the list of questions and put first the ones that make you think "Oh, this is fun" or "I want to talk about this."

The reason is simple. When you answer a question you wanted to answer, your answer naturally tends to have more energy. The words pour out, stories come to mind, and you may end up writing an answer that's worth reading. On the other hand, an answer to a question you answered out of obligation tends to end up flat.

Followers tend to pick up on the energy in an answer. An answer that shows "this person is having fun answering this" is fun for the reader too. A question box is a tool for having fun, so it makes sense to put the questions you enjoy first.

Criterion 2: Choose questions that matter to many followers

Your answers aren't seen only by the sender. Through your public page and shares on social media, your other followers see them too. So "Will lots of people find value in reading this answer?" is also an important criterion.

General questions like "What do you recommend for X?" or "How do I get started with X?" are useful to your other followers too, not just the sender. On the other hand, an answer to a personal question like "In my particular situation, what should I do about X?" is meant for that sender in particular.

If you've received both kinds, putting the general question first lets one answer bring value to a wider audience. For personal questions, you can answer them when you have more time, or you can point people elsewhere with something like "For your particular situation, please send me a DM."

Criterion 3: Keep variety in mind

When you get several similar questions, answering all of them tends to make your Q&A look repetitive. If "What's your favorite food?" "What's your favorite drink?" and "What's your favorite snack?" all arrive at once, pick just one to answer and skip the rest, or combine them into one answer, like "I'll answer all about my taste in food at once."

On the other hand, picking a good balance of questions from different topics gives your Q&A variety. If you combine them, like one light question, one deep question, and one specialized question, people who visit your public page will feel "there's a mix of topics, and it's fun."

If you answer 5 a week, keeping in mind not to lean toward the same topic changes the impression your whole question box gives.

One more perspective: choose based on how you feel

It's fine to choose which questions to answer based on how you feel that day. On days when you have energy, take on deep questions that need careful thought. On days when you're tired, pick up only the light questions you can answer quickly.

If you force yourself to give every question your full effort, keeping going may start to feel exhausting. Be honest about your condition and choose the ones that are easy to answer. That isn't slacking off. It's a way to keep going for a long time.

On days when you're not in the mood, it's fine not to answer a single one. Taking it slow is okay. If you choose while taking care of your own pace and health, you'll probably be able to keep your question box going as something you enjoy, not a burden.

What about the questions you didn't pick?

Skip the questions you didn't pick, without guilt. The sender is anonymous and has no way of knowing that their question was skipped.

You should avoid putting them on hold with "I'll answer this someday." When on-hold questions pile up, you may feel the pressure of "there are still questions I haven't answered" every time you open your dashboard. Let go of the questions you didn't answer that week, within that week. Being clear-cut like this is one tip for enjoying your question box for a long time.

That said, if the same question keeps coming in, it's likely a theme your followers care a lot about. Even if you skip it the first time, if it arrives a second and third time, it's worth answering.

There's no right answer for how to choose questions. Fun for you, valuable to your followers, and varied. Keeping these 3 things in mind should naturally bring out the appeal of the Q&A in your question box.