RiLiFi
Start free

New every day · Free list · No sign-up

Question of the day for work.

A question of the day for work is one short, work-safe question to open a stand-up, a team meeting or the team chat. Today’s is below, then the last week’s, then all 120 on the workday, the team and learning.

Work question of the day, 30 October

What’s the first thing you do when you sit down to work?

  • Check email
  • Make a coffee
  • Plan the day
  • Open the team chat

Poll

Ask today’s question live as a poll – everyone votes from their phone, free for 100 people.

The last 7 days

  1. 29 OctoberWhat’s one thing you’ll leave at work this weekend?Word cloud
  2. 28 OctoberWhat does growth look like for you this year, in one word?Word cloud
  3. 27 OctoberWhich other team would you like to work with more?Word cloud
  4. 26 OctoberWhat makes Mondays easier?Poll
  5. 25 OctoberWhat gave you energy this week?Poll
  6. 24 OctoberWhat would you like to read more about?Poll
  7. 23 OctoberWhat’s a team win from this quarter we should remember?Talk it through
Sample

Poll

What’s the first thing you do when you sit down to work?

  • Check email
  • Make a coffee
  • Plan the day
  • Open the team chat

All 120 questions

Word cloud questions take one to three words, Poll questions have set answers, Talk it through questions need a sentence, and Q&A questions are for leaders: the team posts them and upvotes in a live Q&A. None of them touch health, money, religion, politics, appearance or family status.

Workday

  1. What’s the first thing you do when you sit down to work?PollAnswers: Check email · Make a coffee · Plan the day · Open the team chat
  2. What’s one task you’d happily automate?Word cloud
  3. Which part of your workday goes fastest?PollAnswers: The morning · Lunchtime · The afternoon · The last hour
  4. Your best trick for a long afternoon:PollAnswers: A walk · A snack · Music · Switching tasks
  5. Name a word you’d ban from work emails.Word cloud
  6. What’s the most-used item on your desk?Word cloud
  7. Which browser tab is always open for you?Word cloud
  8. What makes a to-do list actually work?Talk it through
  9. What’s the best subject line you’ve seen on a work email?Talk it through
  10. Name a small thing that makes your workspace better.Word cloud
  11. Which task could you do with your eyes closed?Word cloud
  12. What do you do when you’re stuck?Talk it through
  13. When do you plan your week?PollAnswers: Monday morning · Friday afternoon · The night before · I don’t
  14. What tells you a workday went well?Talk it through
  15. Which notification would you switch off forever?PollAnswers: Email · Chat · Calendar reminders · Software updates
  16. Where do you think through a problem best?PollAnswers: At my desk · On a walk · In the shower · Talking it out
  17. What’s a tool you’d recommend to the whole team?Word cloud
  18. What’s one thing you do to protect your focus time?Talk it through
  19. What’s your go-to break snack?Word cloud
  20. Which day of the week are you most productive?PollAnswers: Monday · Tuesday · Wednesday · Thursday
  21. What’s a task you secretly enjoy?Word cloud
  22. What’s the most satisfying part of your job?Talk it through
  23. Name a work habit you picked up from a colleague.Talk it through
  24. What does a perfect Friday afternoon at work look like?Talk it through
  25. The best thing about your commute, or not having one:PollAnswers: Podcasts · Thinking time · Fresh air · No commute at all
  26. What’s one task you always put off?Word cloud
  27. Your workload right now:PollAnswers: Light · Just right · Full · Overflowing
  28. Which work app would you delete if you could?Word cloud
  29. What’s one rule you have for your inbox?Talk it through
  30. What makes Mondays easier?PollAnswers: A plan made on Friday · Good coffee · No early meetings · A slow start

Team

  1. What’s one thing our team does better than anyone?Talk it through
  2. What’s one thing you’d happily help a teammate with this week?Talk it through
  3. What makes a team meeting worth it?Talk it through
  4. The best way to say thank you at work:PollAnswers: Say it in person · A written note · A public shout-out · Coffee on me
  5. What should our team celebrate more often?Word cloud
  6. How do you like to be recognized for good work?PollAnswers: In public · In private · In writing · A simple thanks
  7. What’s a team strength we don’t talk about enough?Word cloud
  8. Which superpower would help our team most this month?PollAnswers: Pausing time · Reading minds · Teleporting · Perfect memory
  9. What’s the best team lunch spot you’ve been to?Word cloud
  10. What’s one thing you’d like to learn from someone on this team?Talk it through
  11. What would make our meetings shorter?Talk it through
  12. What’s the best compliment you’ve had from a colleague?Talk it through
  13. If our team were a band, what would we play?PollAnswers: Rock · Jazz · Pop · Classical
  14. What’s one thing we should stop doing as a team?Talk it through
  15. Which team achievement are you proudest of this year?Talk it through
  16. The best way to welcome a new teammate:PollAnswers: A team lunch · A buddy · A welcome note · A clear first-week plan
  17. What’s a sign our team is doing well?Talk it through
  18. What makes working together easy?Talk it through
  19. Where should our next team day be?PollAnswers: Outdoors · A museum · A cooking school · Our own office
  20. What should our team’s mascot be?Word cloud
  21. Without names, what do you appreciate about a colleague this week?Talk it through
  22. What’s a team decision you’d like to look at again?Q&A
  23. Which kind of meeting do you find most useful?PollAnswers: One-to-ones · Team meetings · Planning · Retros
  24. What’s one question you’d like our manager to answer?Q&A
  25. What helps you trust a new teammate?PollAnswers: Keeping promises · Asking questions · Sharing credit · Being on time
  26. What’s one thing we could do to help each other more?Talk it through
  27. Which team habit saves us the most time?Word cloud
  28. If our team wrote a book, what would it be called?Talk it through
  29. What’s a team win from this quarter we should remember?Talk it through
  30. Which other team would you like to work with more?Word cloud

Learning and growth

  1. What’s a skill you used this week that you didn’t have a year ago?Word cloud
  2. What’s the best course or workshop you’ve taken?Word cloud
  3. What’s one thing you’ve stopped doing that made work better?Talk it through
  4. How much time a week do you spend learning?PollAnswers: Under an hour · 1 to 2 hours · 3 to 5 hours · More than 5
  5. What’s a question you’d ask a mentor?Talk it through
  6. What would you teach yourself if you had a free week?PollAnswers: A new language · Coding · Design · Public speaking
  7. Which job outside your field could teach you something?Word cloud
  8. What’s the most useful feedback you’ve had?Talk it through
  9. What’s a goal you’d like to reach this year?Talk it through
  10. Which part of the business would you like to see from the inside?PollAnswers: Sales · Customer support · Product · Operations
  11. What do you understand now that confused you a year ago?Talk it through
  12. Name a person in your field you learn from.Word cloud
  13. What’s the best way to learn a new tool?Talk it through
  14. What would you like to try that’s outside your role?Talk it through
  15. What’s a small experiment you could try this month?Talk it through
  16. What’s a habit that helps you keep learning?Word cloud
  17. Which conference or event would you love to attend?Word cloud
  18. What makes a one-to-one worth the time?Talk it through
  19. What’s a strength you’d like to use more at work?Word cloud
  20. What’s one thing that would help you grow here?Q&A
  21. What’s the best thing a manager ever did for you?Talk it through
  22. How do you like to get new information?PollAnswers: Short video · Written guide · Live demo · Trial and error
  23. Which skill is getting more important in your job?PollAnswers: Writing · Working with data · AI tools · Presenting
  24. What’s a myth about learning you used to believe?Talk it through
  25. Which project taught you the most?Talk it through
  26. What would you put in a guide to your job?Talk it through
  27. What’s one process you’d like to simplify?Q&A
  28. Which skill helped you most in your first job?Word cloud
  29. What would you like to read more about?PollAnswers: Leadership · Our industry · New tools · Writing well
  30. What does growth look like for you this year, in one word?Word cloud

Weekly check-in

  1. What’s your top priority this week?Talk it through
  2. What’s one thing you finished this week?Word cloud
  3. Where could you use a second pair of eyes this week?Talk it through
  4. What’s the most interesting thing you worked on this week?Talk it through
  5. How are you heading into the weekend?PollAnswers: Recharged · Tired but happy · Ready for a break · Still in Monday mode
  6. What would you like to get done before the week ends?Talk it through
  7. What went better than expected this week?Word cloud
  8. Which meeting could you skip next week?PollAnswers: A status update · A planning meeting · A one-to-one · None of them
  9. What’s a quick win you could get next week?Talk it through
  10. What’s one thing you’d like to hand off next week?Talk it through
  11. Which goal from this month is on track?Talk it through
  12. What’s taking up most of your time this week?PollAnswers: Meetings · Email · Focused work · Unplanned requests
  13. What’s one decision you need this week?Q&A
  14. How clear are your priorities this week?PollAnswers: Crystal clear · Mostly clear · A bit fuzzy · No idea
  15. What did a customer or user teach you this week?Talk it through
  16. Which task felt easier than last time?Word cloud
  17. What’s your focus for tomorrow?Word cloud
  18. What news from your project should the team hear?Talk it through
  19. How much focus time did you get this week?PollAnswers: Plenty · Some · Very little · What’s focus time?
  20. If you could clear one task off your list today, which one?Word cloud
  21. Which part of your work deserves more time next week?Word cloud
  22. What’s one risk you see coming?Talk it through
  23. What’s the next milestone you’re working toward?Word cloud
  24. What would you like to try with the team next sprint?Talk it through
  25. How did this week compare to last week?PollAnswers: Better · About the same · Harder · Too early to say
  26. What’s a small improvement you made this week?Talk it through
  27. What’s the first task on your list for next week?Word cloud
  28. What’s something you’re waiting on?Word cloud
  29. What gave you energy this week?PollAnswers: A good meeting · Finishing something · Helping someone · A break outside
  30. What’s one thing you’ll leave at work this weekend?Word cloud

How to run a question of the day at work

One question, two minutes, then the agenda. Ask it at the same point every day so the team expects it, and answer it yourself first so people see how short an answer can be.

  • In a stand-up. Ask it before the updates. A word cloud or poll question gives a read of the room in seconds, without anyone having to speak first. Save the Talk it through questions for smaller teams.
  • In the team chat. Post it at the start of the day. Remote teams get a reason to say hello that isn’t about a task.
  • In a weekly check-in. Use the Weekly check-in section on the same day each week. The answers tell you what is moving, what is stuck and where help is needed.

Safe for any team

These questions stick to the work itself: tasks, tools, meetings, learning and the team. Nobody has to share anything private to answer.

For questions with two set answers, try our this or that questions for work.

FAQ

Questions about this list

What is a good question of the day for work?
One that takes a few words to answer and tells you something about how the team works, such as “What’s one task you’d happily automate?” It should be easy to answer without sharing anything private.
How do I use a question of the day in a stand-up?
Ask it before the updates and give people a minute. In a big or remote stand-up, run it as a live word cloud or poll so everyone answers at once, then read a few answers out.
Are these questions safe for any workplace?
Yes. They leave out health, money, religion, politics, appearance and family status, and stick to tasks, tools, meetings, learning and the team.
What is a good question of the week for a team?
A question that looks back at the week or ahead to the next, such as “Which goal from this month is on track?” The Weekly check-in section on this page is written for exactly that.
Can the team answer live?
Yes, for questions tagged Word cloud, Poll or Q&A. Make that activity in RiLiFi and share the PIN or QR code. People answer from their phones and the results show on screen. The free plan covers 100 people per session.