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I can see why there seems to be a stigma attached to admitting you don't understand something, especially if you've just started at a new place and you want to

I can see why there seems to be a stigma attached to admitting you don't understand something, especially if you've just started at a new place and you want to make a good impression and reassure them they made the right choice hiring you. I've been guilty too many times of not speaking up when I don't understand something and it comes back to bite you. It makes you look more incompetent being ignorant and not speaking up and then ultimately failing to deliver, than it does to admit you don't understand something thus lowering expectations of the outcome from your work. To be honest most senior developers are guilty of not creating the right kind of environments for people to comfortably admit they don't understand something and then it brings the whole team down as a result. With exception of where I work now, the senior developers at all other large companies I've worked at made you feel stupid for admitting you didn't understand. There's no weakness in admitting you don't understand, but because of the way companies these days throw words like Agile and lean around, it's no surprise people are afraid to speak up when a company works in the form of 3 week sprints. While it comes down to the volatile environments managers and senior developers have created over the years, a bad economy doesn't exactly help when it comes to admitting you don't understand something you were hired to do either.

aquark 14y ago
The best new hires we've brought on are the ones that jump in and ask for explanations. When explaining things to a new hire I already know they don't understand everything, and I expect questions. Those questions help drive the discussion further in a way that hopefully fits in better with their thought process/learning style. It is much more frustrating trying to explain things to people that just nod and have to be continually questioned to try and find out what they actually understand!
- DigitalSea 14y ago
  I am glad to hear that. If only more companies would lead by example and understand that just because you hired a Javascript or Python gun does not mean they're going to be familiar or understand with the way your company works, its methodologies or best practices immediately. Adjusting to a new environment takes time, there will be questions. The issue seems to be like I said, a lot of places I've worked at have made you feel stupid for asking questions (at least the senior developers anyway), especially if said company works fast and has adopted a methodology like Agile and SCRUM which can sometimes cause a stressed and tense work environment when the sprint period is coming to an end and things aren't going the way as planned. I wouldn't exactly say I don't know what I am doing, but even I struggle just like everyone else because I don't know everything and it's better to ask a colleague who might than it is to search Google. Managers need to train their staff to be more sympathetic and patient with new hires especially. Some places (by the sounds of it like yours) have created a comfortable environment where it's easy to ask for help and clarification, this is how it should be everywhere.
vosper 14y ago
Whilst it's important to admit that you don't understand, senior people can use "I don't understand" as a way to ensure that everybody understands. If you're senior and you say that you don't understand then you're opening the gate for everyone to discuss the issue in more detail; no junior workmates will feel dumb - even the senior guy doesn't understand it! And chances are that the deeper discussion will unearth something I didn't fuly appreciate, even if I wouldn't have called "I don't understand" for other people's benefit.

aquark 14y ago

The best new hires we've brought on are the ones that jump in and ask for explanations. When explaining things to a new hire I already know they don't understand everything, and I expect questions. Those questions help drive the discussion further in a way that hopefully fits in better with their thought process/learning style. It is much more frustrating trying to explain things to people that just nod and have to be continually questioned to try and find out what they actually understand!

DigitalSea 14y ago
I am glad to hear that. If only more companies would lead by example and understand that just because you hired a Javascript or Python gun does not mean they're going to be familiar or understand with the way your company works, its methodologies or best practices immediately. Adjusting to a new environment takes time, there will be questions. The issue seems to be like I said, a lot of places I've worked at have made you feel stupid for asking questions (at least the senior developers anyway), especially if said company works fast and has adopted a methodology like Agile and SCRUM which can sometimes cause a stressed and tense work environment when the sprint period is coming to an end and things aren't going the way as planned. I wouldn't exactly say I don't know what I am doing, but even I struggle just like everyone else because I don't know everything and it's better to ask a colleague who might than it is to search Google. Managers need to train their staff to be more sympathetic and patient with new hires especially. Some places (by the sounds of it like yours) have created a comfortable environment where it's easy to ask for help and clarification, this is how it should be everywhere.

vosper 14y ago

Whilst it's important to admit that you don't understand, senior people can use "I don't understand" as a way to ensure that everybody understands. If you're senior and you say that you don't understand then you're opening the gate for everyone to discuss the issue in more detail; no junior workmates will feel dumb - even the senior guy doesn't understand it! And chances are that the deeper discussion will unearth something I didn't fuly appreciate, even if I wouldn't have called "I don't understand" for other people's benefit.