3 ms·
I like to call "not being afraid to look dumb" "weaponizing my own stupidity." I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but if you aren't worried about looking
by distortedsignal 3y ago
I like to call "not being afraid to look dumb" "weaponizing my own stupidity." I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but if you aren't worried about looking like a dope from time-to-time, you can help the actually smart people in the room agree on stuff.
- engineer_22 3y agoWhole heatedly resonate with this. In my experience, people love questions (stupid questions, simple questions, doesn't matter), it gives them an opportunity to feel informed and impactful. If you ask a question and someone is scornful ("you should know that already!"), First time it's on them, second time it's on you, third time update your resume.
- antod 3y agoI use dumb questions a lot as a manager - although my hiring intentions are to try and make me the actual dumbest person on the team anyway. I don't use it so much for the teasing out agreement or highlighting problems angle though - one of my goals is setting the accepted threshold for dumb questions low enough that junior/newer or less confident team members aren't afraid to ask their own "dumb questions". Those questions are usually more important than mine, and teams that don't have that "no question is too dumb" culture are often dysfunctional or heading that way.