Let Him Talk

The questions, part 1 of 2
Forty question groups across two pages. Ask one part at a time; follow his lead.
Before the lodge
1. “Where did you grow up, and what did your folks do?”
2. “What brought you to this town, or kept you here?”
3. “What was the town like then? Where did men work?”
4. “What did you do for a living, and how did you come to it?”
5. “Were you in the service? Where did that take you?”
Finding the lodge
6. “Who asked you to join, or who did you ask? Tell me about him.”
7. “What did you know about Masons before that? What did your family think?”
8. “What do you remember about the night you were initiated, apart from the work itself? Who was there? How
did you feel driving home?”
9. “Who taught you your proficiency? What was he like?”
10. “When did you first feel you belonged?”
The men
11. “Who is the brother you miss most? Tell me about him.”
12. “Who ran things when you came in? How?”
13. “Who was the character everybody has a story about? Tell me one.”
14. “Who did the work nobody saw?”
15. “Who took you under his wing, and what did he teach you that was not in the book?”
An ordinary night
16. “Walk me through a stated meeting in [decade]. What time did you get there? Where did you park? Who was
in the kitchen?”
17. “Where did you sit? Who sat next to you?”
18. “What did the building smell like? What was the light like?”
19. “What did you eat? Who cooked?”
20. “What happened after the meeting closed? Where did the visiting happen?”
Follow-ups that work for any answer: “Tell me more about that.” “What happened next?” “What did that look like?”
“Who else was there?” “How did you understand it at the time?”
LET HIM TALK
QUESTIONS
Brotherhood of Purpose · Robert W. Linn, PM · Revision 2
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The questions, part 2 of 2
The big moments, the hard parts, and what he wants carried forward.
The big moments
21. “Tell me about the building: when you came, what changed, what happened to it.”
22. “The fire, the flood, the sale, the merger, the move, the parade, the anniversary. Which of those did you live
through? Start with one.”
23. “What was the best year the lodge ever had while you were in it? What made it that?”
24. “What was the worst? What got you through?”
25. “Was there a night you will never forget? What happened?”
The lodge and the town
26. “What did the lodge do in this town that people knew about? What did it do that nobody knew about? What
did the town think of the Masons?”
27. “Without naming private circumstances, how did the lodge support people through difficulty?”
28. “How did the lodge fit with the church, the mill, the base, the Legion, the Elks?”
The hard parts
29. “Tell me about a disagreement that mattered. How did it end?”
30. “Was there a time you nearly quit? What kept you, or brought you back?”
31. “What did the lodge get wrong, in your time?”
32. “Is there something you wish you had done differently?”
Carrying it forward
33. “What do you hope a brother fifty years from now understands about this lodge?”
34. “What would you say to the man being raised next month?”
35. “What is the one thing that should never change here? What is the one thing that should?”
36. “What did the lodge give you that nothing else did?”
Housekeeping, always last
37. “Spell for me the names you mentioned: [read your list].”
38. “Do you have photographs, programs, or papers the lodge should copy? May I come back with a camera?”
39. “Who else should I sit with?”
40. “May I call you if I have a question when I write this up?”
Before your first real sitting
Practice first. Pair up with another brother: ten minutes each way, one opening question, and only three
follow-ups allowed (“Tell me more about that,” “What do you mean by that,” “Could you give me an
example”). Afterward, count your interruptions, your own stories, the times you asked two questions at once,
and the silences you filled early. Write down one thing to do better. Every man who will interview does this,
including the Past Masters. Do the first real interview as the one being interviewed; you will learn more from
that chair than from any page here.
LET HIM TALK
QUESTIONS
Brotherhood of Purpose · Robert W. Linn, PM · Revision 2
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