Questions · Coworkers

Questions to ask your coworkers that aren’t about the deadline

Questions for the people you share a building, a team or a group chat with: quick ones for the break room, a few about how they work, life outside the office, and some for coworkers who have become friends.

  • 20 questions
  • EN + TL on every card
  • Free in the app
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Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.

Getting to know№ 46

When plans change, how do you decide what to keep, drop, or adjust?

Kapag nagbago ang plans, paano mo dini-decide kung ano ang itutuloy, bibitawan, o ia-adjust?

Tap to flipkumustahan
A note

Changed plans show priorities quickly. Sometimes the real answer is comfort, people, responsibility, peace, or simply energy.

Kapag nagbago ang plans, mabilis lumabas ang priorities. Minsan comfort, tao, responsibility, peace, o energy lang talaga.

Tap to returnkumustahan

The questions

20 questions to ask your coworkers

Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.

At the coffee machine

6 questions

Thirty-second questions for the break room or the elevator.

  1. When your brain is tired, what is your go-to order?

    Kapag pagod na utak mo, ano yung go-to order mo?

    Back of the card

    The reliable order deserves respect. It shows up when decisions are too much and hunger is already making a case.

    Respect sa reliable order. Lumalabas siya kapag ayaw mo nang mag-decide at gutom na rin ang nagsasalita.

  2. While waiting for food, a ride, or someone late, how do you pass the time?

    Habang naghihintay ng pagkain, sasakyan, o late na tao, paano mo pinapalipas yung oras?

    Back of the card

    Waiting brings out our tiny survival styles. Some people scroll, some observe, and some start making stories in their head.

    Lumilitaw yung tiny survival style natin kapag naghihintay. May nag-scroll, may nag-oobserve, may gumagawa na ng kwento sa isip.

  3. On a plane, would you choose a window seat or more room for your legs?

    Sa eroplano, mas gusto mo ba ng upuan sa tabi ng bintana o mas maluwag para sa mga paa mo?

    Back of the card

    For this flight, would you rather chat, nap, or watch the view?

    Sa biyaheng ito, mas gusto mo bang makipagkuwentuhan, umidlip, o tumingin sa tanawin?

  4. Pick your ideal weather: a warm rainy afternoon or a cool sunny morning.

    Pumili ng gusto mong panahon: maulan pero mainit na hapon o maaraw pero malamig na umaga.

    Back of the card

    Choose a sound to go with your weather.

    Pumili ng tunog na bagay sa pinili mong panahon.

  5. Pick one small item you use often that makes life feel a little easier.

    Pumili ng isang small item na madalas mong gamitin at nagpapagaan ng life kahit konti.

    Back of the card

    Small useful things can feel quietly heroic. They make the day easier without asking for attention.

    May small useful things na quietly heroic. Pinapadali nila yung araw nang hindi nagpapapansin, kahit simple lang sila.

  6. If you were too tired to think, what would you order?

    Kapag pagod ka nang mag-isip, ano yung o-orderin mo?

    Back of the card

    The no-thinking order is its own kind of comfort. It is the choice that carries you when your brain is done.

    May comfort din sa order na hindi mo na kailangang isipin. Siya yung choice kapag ubos na utak mo.

How they like to work

5 questions

Useful before you share a project, and nobody feels interviewed.

  1. If someone worked or studied with you for one week, what would they notice about your style?

    Kung may makakasama ka sa work o school for one week, ano kaya ang mapapansin nila sa style mo?

    Back of the card

    Your style may show in pace, focus, questions, breaks, or how you handle pressure. People notice more than we think.

    Pwedeng lumabas ang style mo sa pace, focus, tanong, breaks, o paano ka humarap sa pressure. Marami palang napapansin ang tao.

  2. When plans change, how do you decide what to keep, drop, or adjust?

    Kapag nagbago ang plans, paano mo dini-decide kung ano ang itutuloy, bibitawan, o ia-adjust?

    Back of the card

    Changed plans show priorities quickly. Sometimes the real answer is comfort, people, responsibility, peace, or simply energy.

    Kapag nagbago ang plans, mabilis lumabas ang priorities. Minsan comfort, tao, responsibility, peace, o energy lang talaga.

  3. In a group hangout, which role do you usually fall into: planner, joker, listener, snack person, or something else?

    Sa group hangout, anong role ang usually napupunta sa'yo: planner, joker, listener, snack person, o iba pa?

    Back of the card

    Group roles can be funny because they appear before anyone assigns them. Somehow every hangout finds its planner, joker, listener, or snack person.

    Minsan lumalabas yung role bago pa may mag-assign. Sa bawat hangout, may planner, joker, listener, o snack person talaga.

  4. After finishing something hard, how do you usually celebrate or recover?

    Kapag natapos mo ang mahirap na bagay, paano ka usually nagse-celebrate o nagre-recover?

    Back of the card

    Finishing something hard deserves a landing. Some people mark it loudly; some just need a quiet exhale.

    Kapag may natapos kang mahirap, kailangan din ng landing. May nagse-celebrate nang malakas; may tahimik na hinga lang.

  5. What small thing do you naturally take care of during a hangout?

    Anong maliit na bagay ang natural mong inaasikaso kapag may hangout?

    Back of the card

    Some small things find the same person every time. It can be funny how a group quietly learns who handles what.

    May maliliit na bagay na laging may hinahanap na tao. Funny rin kung paano tahimik na natututo ang group kung sino ang umaasikaso ng ano.

Life outside the office

5 questions

Hobbies, free afternoons and the Saturday they’d plan if they could.

  1. If you had one free hour every week, what hobby would you go back to?

    Kung may isang free hour ka every week, anong hobby ang babalikan mo?

    Back of the card

    A hobby you miss can point to a part of you that still wants some space.

    Yung hobby na nami-miss mo minsan tumuturo sa part ng sarili mo na gusto pa rin ng konting space.

  2. If money were no problem, how would you spend a Saturday with nothing you had to do?

    Kung walang kailangang gawin at hindi problema ang pera, paano mo gagamitin ang isang Sabado?

    Back of the card

    Picture the end of your Saturday. What would make you wish it were still morning?

    Isipin ang katapusan ng Sabado mo. Bakit mo gugustuhing umaga pa lang?

  3. If your afternoon suddenly became free, how would you spend it?

    Kung biglang naging free ang hapon mo, paano mo ito gagamitin?

    Back of the card

    Free time shows what you reach for when nobody is asking for anything. It can be rest, fun, errands, or nothing at all.

    Makikita sa free time kung saan ka kusang pupunta kapag walang kailangan sa'yo. Puwedeng pahinga, saya, errands, o wala lang.

  4. Name one small, specific thing you enjoy more than people expect.

    Magbanggit ng isang maliit at specific na bagay na mas enjoy mo kaysa ina-expect ng iba.

    Back of the card

    Specific joys can be tiny clues about a person. They do not need to make sense to everyone to be real.

    Yung specific joys, maliit na clue tungkol sa tao. Hindi kailangan gets ng lahat para maging real.

  5. If you could open a tiny shop just for fun, what would it sell?

    Kung magbubukas ka ng maliit na tindahan for fun, ano ang ibebenta mo?

    Back of the card

    What would you call your shop?

    Ano ang ipapangalan mo sa tindahan?

Once you trust each other

4 questions

For the coworker you’d happily get lunch with.

  1. Tell us about a time someone was fair to you in a way you still remember.

    Ikuwento yung time na naging fair sa'yo ang isang tao, at natatandaan mo pa rin.

    Back of the card

    Fairness can be memorable because it gives people room to breathe. It says, I see the whole situation, not only the mistake.

    Natatandaan ang fairness kasi nakakahinga ang tao. Parang sinasabi nito, nakikita ko yung buong situation, hindi lang yung mali.

  2. Which compliment have you remembered long after someone said it?

    Anong compliment ang tumatak sa'yo kahit matagal na itong sinabi?

    Back of the card

    The exact words are optional. Notice which part of the compliment stayed with you.

    Hindi kailangan ang eksaktong salita. Balikan kung aling bahagi ng papuri ang tumatak sa'yo.

  3. Who is someone you respect for the way they live, even in small things?

    Sino yung taong nirerespeto mo sa paraan ng buhay niya, kahit sa maliliit na bagay?

    Back of the card

    Respect often begins with small, steady things. A simple habit can show a lot about how someone moves through life.

    Madalas nagsisimula ang respeto sa maliliit pero consistent na bagay. May simpleng habit na maraming sinasabi tungkol sa isang tao.

  4. When did you last change your mind after hearing a good reason?

    Kailan ka huling nagbago ng isip dahil may narinig kang magandang reason?

    Back of the card

    Try an optional before-and-after: "I thought..., but now..."

    Kung gusto mo: "Dati, akala ko..., pero ngayon..."

How to use them

Before you ask

The questions to ask coworkers are small, specific and easy to answer in the time it takes the coffee to brew. You spend more waking hours with these people than with most of your friends, yet plenty of work relationships never get past the weather and the workload.

Two things usually go wrong. Either every conversation circles back to the project, or someone swings too personal too fast and the other person shuts down. The middle ground is habits and preferences: the go-to order when your brain is fried, the small thing on their desk that makes the day easier, what they’d do with a surprise free afternoon. Those are safe in front of anyone, including a manager.

Use them one at a time, not as a list. Ask while you wait for a meeting room to clear or walk out to the parking lot, answer it yourself, and remember the answer. The last group is for coworkers you already know a little; it works over lunch or on a long drive to a client.

Good for

  • Break room and coffee runs
  • Walking to and from meetings
  • Lunch with one or two coworkers
  • Getting to know someone on another team
  • Carpooling to an offsite

Tips

  1. Answer your own question first if they hesitate; it shows the size of answer you’re after.
  2. One question per conversation. A string of them starts to feel like a survey.
  3. Stay off salary, politics, health and relationships unless they bring it up.
  4. Remember the little things (a favorite snack, a hobby) and bring them up a few weeks later.
  5. Include the quiet coworker by asking them directly in a small group, not in front of the whole team.

Decks for this

Coworkers

Frequently asked questions

What are good questions to ask coworkers?

Questions about habits, preferences and life outside work: their go-to order on a long day, the small item that makes their desk better, the hobby they’d pick back up with a free hour. They’re easy to answer, work-safe and lead somewhere.

How do you get to know coworkers without being awkward?

Ask one light question in moments that already exist, like waiting for a meeting or getting coffee, and share your own answer. Small and often beats one big conversation.

What questions should you avoid asking coworkers?

Skip salary, age, politics, religion, health, and dating or family plans. If a coworker brings one of these up, follow their lead, but don’t open with it.

Is there an app with questions for coworkers?

Kumustahan is a free conversation card app with Getting to know you, Icebreakers and Just for fun decks. Choose Keep it light and every card is safe to read out loud at work.

Bring a better question to the table.

Free on iPhone and Android. 420 cards free, no account, works offline.

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