Giving Answers

Giving Answers

You're sixteen again, and newsflash, you suck at math. If you fail this upcoming test you could flunk too. You dig deep and muster up the courage to ask your teacher for help. Teach responds "If you have a question chances are others do to. You need to ask this in front of the whole class". Wait what? If that were true you would have covered this question already. Worse, no one has asked it yet and its obvious they didn't ask the teacher in private either.

The good news, you're not sixteen worried about flunking. The bad, you are in a highly competitive field, that lays people off without a seconds hesitation. Probably not helping. Good news, the word "empathy" is a popular buzz word.

I've been at two companies that have a questions channel. Both looks the same. Its the scene from an old western where the tumbleweed is the only thing rolling by. No one is asking

This has nothing to do with being the one asking the question. This is about you being the one with the answer. If we want to use the word empathy we need to understand its meaning. In this case you were once the person with the question. You can empathize with them.

They came to you because they trust you enough to feel vulnerable. You should feel honored, and overjoyed that is what others think of you. Sadly I have seen the opposite reaction in my past career and in tech. Its an interruption, or some other justification. That is not lifting others up and it directly contradicts empathy.

Chances are others do have that question, that part is correct. This is an opportunity to help those who are less experienced contribute to documentation and record that answer for others to see. You think you are slowing down to help them but what is really happening is you are speeding them up. Now when you return back to work velocity has increased.

We were all new at something once, and can remember the fear of failure. This is a chance to help others ease that fear while improving our team.