105 Individual Lifetime Questions to Ask People (Storytelling)

Ask people these 105 Individual Lifetime questions for storytelling.

I have interviewed hundreds of people about their lives and asked them questions to look back over their lifetime. Based on the answers I received in those interviews, I have compiled writing prompts and questions for a lifetime overview to ask people when writing narratives. Use these prompts and questions to help you

•  Identify events and memories you can write about
•  Organize and write your narrative and story
•  Develop questions to ask other people about their life’s
• Organize, research and write stories about others
• Know what type of information to include in narratives and stories
• Identify memorabilia, artifacts, photos, documents to include in stories
• Develop ideas for journaling, story starters, poetry, memoirs, and more

105 Questions about Individuals’ Lifetime

The “Individual Lifetime Overview” writing prompts and questions to ask people are part of the 28 articles, 108 category series entitled “7,500-plus Questions About Life to Ask People When Writing Narratives.” The prompts and questions are provided to help you look at an individual lifetime overview from as many angles as possible when writing narratives about yourself, your family, and others.

Find 105 questions and prompts. Use these prompts and questions about an individual lifetime to gather and organize information to help you write about an individual, your family, and others. These questions cover various highlights of a person’s life, including thoughts, feelings, and experiences

Approach each topic from the point of view of the person/lives you are writing about. You don’t have to ask every question. Review the questions and determine which ones are most appropriate to ask. I would encourage you to modify and add questions as you desire.

I have prepared a couple of other resources that will provide value in interviewing for and writing individual, personal, and family narratives: “Complete Guide for Conducting Oral History Interviews” and “Complete Guide to Writing A Personal Narrative.”

1. What would you consider the essential highlights of your life?
   • Personal life? Explain.
   • Marriage? Explain.
   • Family? Explain.
   • Work/Career? Explain.
   • Friendships? Explain.
2. What do you consider to your accomplishments? Explain.
3. What are you most proud of? Explain.
4. What are the most memorable experiences? Explain.
5. What are your least memorable experiences? Explain.
6. What you most proud of in your life? Explain.
7. What do you consider to most important decisions? Why? Explain.
   • What decisions do you wish you had not made? Why? Explain.
8. What were a few of your most memorable dreams and goals in life? How did they evolve during your life?
9. Can you share the times in your life when you worked hard to achieve or get something?
   • What happened? Explain.
   • Did it turn out the way you wanted? Explain.
   • What experiences do you remember?
   • What lessons did you learn?
   • What, if anything, would you change about the experience?
10. How did you change/evolve as an individual during your life?
    • What were you like in your youth before age 18?
    • What were you like from age 18-25?
    • What were you like from age 25-45?
    • What were you like from age 45-65?
    • What were you like, 65+?
11. How did your family change/evolve during your life?
    • What were you like in your youth before age 18?
    • What were you like from age 18-25?
    • What were you like from age 25-45?
    • What were you like from age 45-65?
    • What were you like, 65+?

12. What did you like most about yourself? What other questions about an individual lifetime would you add?
13. Is there anything you would have changed about yourself? What? Explain.
14. What do you consider to be the times of your life that were most difficult?
    • What happened?
    • How did you work through this time in your life?
    • What were the outcomes?
    • What did you learn?
    • How did the experience change your life?
15. What you most grateful for in your life? Explain.
16. What would a friend say about you?
17. Who would you consider to be your best friends? Why? Tell me about each person.
18. What do you consider to be your accomplishments during your life?
19. Is there any decision or part of your life that you like to have lived over? Why? Explain.
20. What would you consider to be your accomplishments during your life?
21. What do you consider to be missed opportunities? Explain.
22. Where are some of your favorite places to have visited?
23. Do you have a favorite place to go?
24. Was there ever a time when you overcame a bad habit?
    • What was the habit?
    • How did you overcome the habit?
    • How did that make you feel?
25. How would you characterize your relationship with your spouse?
    • What are some of your favorite memories?
    • Was there ever a time that was challenging? Explain.
    • What did you like and dislike?
26. How would you characterize your relationship with your family?
    • What are some of your favorite memories?
    • Was there ever a time that was challenging? Explain.
    • What did you like and dislike?
27. How would you have characterized your family?
    • Over the years, were they close-knit?
    • Did everyone get along well?
28. Were/were you happy with the contribution that you made to your family?
29. What would you consider to be the lessons learned?
    • How do you learn that lesson?
    • Can you share the experience?
30. What would you consider to be your philosophy of life?
    • How did your philosophy evolve?
31. What is the most important gift you have ever received? Explain?
32. Who would you consider to be your mentors in life?
    • Talk about each mentor and what they meant to you?
33. Was there ever a time when you looked up to someone and be let down? Explain.
34. Was there ever a time when you disappointed yourself? Explain.
35. What type of questions about an individual lifetime have you asked others?
36. What are your favorite memories about giving service to others?

37. Was there a time when someone provides service to?
    • What was the service?
    • How did that make a difference in your life or that period?
38. Did you worry about the future or take things one day at a time?
39. What did you learn during your lifetime?
40. Did you pass anything on to others?
41. What was “life’s greatest lesson”?
    • When did you learn it?
42. In what ways did it change your life?
43. What was the best advice that anyone ever gave you?
    • How did it help you?
44. Was there ever a time when you worked hard for something?
    • What was it?
    • Explain your journey?
    • What was the outcome, and what did that mean to you?
45. What have been some of the most important causes in your life? Explain.
46. What have been your favorite hobbies?
    • How did you get started?
    • What about the hobby did you like?
    • What memories do you have?
47. What role did religion mean to you?
    • If you like, share some of your experiences.
48. Did you ever feel that you had failed at anything?
    • What was it?
    • Why did you feel that you hadn’t succeeded?
49. What words of wisdom would you give to a younger you?
50. What words of wisdom would you give to your family?
51. What words of wisdom would you give to your grandchildren?
52. What other questions about an individual lifetime should we be asking?
    • How would you answer those questions?

Click Here to return to the writing prompts and questions about an individual lifetime.