Re: Playing dumb? Not!

Subject: Re: Playing dumb? Not!
From: "O'Neill, Kate" <kateo -at- CINEBASE -dot- COM>
Date: Tue, 23 Mar 1999 10:03:10 -0800

Geoffrey Hart spake thusly:
> There's a huge difference between playing dumb and admitting your
> ignorance. If you play dumb, don't expect an awful lot of respect.

I agree. That's just what I've been thinking as I read
through all the suggestions to "play dumb." But I also
got the feeling that it was not the best choice of words
to convey what the original author was trying to say.

IME, utter ignorance of a subject gets little information
and even less respect from SMEs; I've had far better luck
trying to be semi-articulate in summarizing what I -do-
understand and where my knowledge has gaps. Every SME is
different, of course, but most whom I've encountered are
intrigued by what could be confusing me once they see that
I have a fair chunk of the subject down.

That's only, of course, -if- I have a fair chunk of the
subject down. If I'm totally clueless, I don't usually like
to approach the SMEs unless there's no other way I can start
educating myself. Experts are often not the best resources
for absolute novices.

--
Kate O'Neill
Manager of Documentation, Cinebase Software
kateo -at- cinebase -dot- com http://www.cinebase.com/
direct: 650-568-7343 general: 650-568-7320

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