Stupid Answers.
My co-worker commented that she got a stupid answer from somebody. I took a look at it and I didn't think it was stupid at all. It was unhelpful, but not stupid. Perhaps that what she meant? It was stupid because it was unhelpful.
It kind of got me thinking. What counts as a stupid answer? I've been on the receiving end of some silly responses. I once emailed a bookstore to ask if they had any boxed sets of for Lord of the Rings, sets with the same edition and publisher. The one we received as a gift had different editions, hence different book covers. The OC side of me couldn't take it so I wanted to know if I could swap it.
Their reply said that my set would contain the same story.
It was maddening. It was condescending. It felt as if they thought I was some kind of idiot who thought different covers meant different content. I knew they didn't understand. I checked my email I again and I thought I was pretty clear. Besides, isn't it absurd that a person would actually think the story would be different? My request probably wasn't something they got often. I realized that they probably didn't take time to understand what I wanted. They didn't give me enough credit and they just assumed I was asking for something ridiculous. From a customer point of view, that's just insulting.
I think that's what causes stupid, unhelpful answers. Some people don't try figure out what the person really needs. Or they're lazy and they just give a half-baked response without caring if they really helped or not.
Good answers aren't always affirmative. Good answers can be negative as long as they don't leave you in a state of confusion and incredulity.
It kind of got me thinking. What counts as a stupid answer? I've been on the receiving end of some silly responses. I once emailed a bookstore to ask if they had any boxed sets of for Lord of the Rings, sets with the same edition and publisher. The one we received as a gift had different editions, hence different book covers. The OC side of me couldn't take it so I wanted to know if I could swap it.
Their reply said that my set would contain the same story.
It was maddening. It was condescending. It felt as if they thought I was some kind of idiot who thought different covers meant different content. I knew they didn't understand. I checked my email I again and I thought I was pretty clear. Besides, isn't it absurd that a person would actually think the story would be different? My request probably wasn't something they got often. I realized that they probably didn't take time to understand what I wanted. They didn't give me enough credit and they just assumed I was asking for something ridiculous. From a customer point of view, that's just insulting.
I think that's what causes stupid, unhelpful answers. Some people don't try figure out what the person really needs. Or they're lazy and they just give a half-baked response without caring if they really helped or not.
Good answers aren't always affirmative. Good answers can be negative as long as they don't leave you in a state of confusion and incredulity.