Don't Be Afraid to Ask

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It was a simple question: How would a new or prospective member know how much or how little participation is desired? The group leader wrote to me: "Everyone else understands what 'active participation' means." This is the classic response to an unaskable question: "You are the only one who doesn't get it."

This is a double-whammy for corporate newcomers -- very often the ones who ask the most naive-slash-insightful questions -- because this response labels you both a rube and a corporate outsider who isn't in the know enough to grasp the foolishness of your query. You are stupid to ask, and foolish to demonstrate your cluelessness.

QUANTUM MECHANICS.

In Bill Bryson's excellent book A Short History of Nearly Everything, he observes that many of the most dramatic scientific discoveries have been made by people who were strangers to the field in which they were most influential. So a physicist makes a breakthrough geological discovery, or a naturalist rocks the world of chemistry (or vice versa).

It's easy to see how this could happen. Only the people who are unschooled enough in their area of interest -- whether it's supply-chain logistics or quantum mechanics -- would have the nerve to ask the naive questions.

That's precisely why you should ask them. Suffer the eye-rolls and the teeth-sucking, as well as the "everyone else understands" and "it's obvious" and other put-downs, and press on until you get your answer. It's worth it, because you'll learn tons -- whether you get a sensible answer or not.

"IT'S OBVIOUS."

Take the case of a new sales representative who is given a whirlwind tour of the company's state-of-the-art distribution center by the facility's chief. "It's beautiful," says the newbie. "Why did you locate the distribution center in Sioux Falls?"

"Harrumph," says the manager, not in so many words. "It's obvious. Don't you read the newspapers? [What is wrong with you? Why did we hire you in the first place?] Sioux Falls is one of the most highly rated business locations. We have access here to major distribution routes. Labor costs are very reasonable. This is an ideal spot."

"Yes, I understand all that," continues the hapless recruit, "but our manufacturing plants are all in Alabama. Doesn't that create some difficulties?" Woe to the naif who poses the unaskable question. It would be a crime, of course, to surface the fact that the manufacturing vice-president has been pushing the CEO to move distribution to Alabama for ages, with no success, because the CEO is from Sioux Falls, and his family lives there.

Maybe it'll be another couple of years before the corporation is shocked to discover that the choice didn't make business sense. Only later, when the manager who made the decision moves on, will people begin to shake their heads in wonder.

NEON SIGNS.

Most unaskable questions won't uncover anything nearly so profound. Many times, they just lift the sheet on issues someone has ignored, on purpose or not. "Everyone else understands it" and "What a stupid question to ask" are the neon signs that point this out.

So take the slings and arrows, and ask away. "Thank you for letting me know what a foolish question I've asked," you may say, "but could you indulge me and answer it anyway?" You may be on your way to a breakthrough discovery.

Liz Ryan writes her "Career Insight" column and answers readers' questions every week at businessweek.com/managing. She is an expert on the new-millennium workplace and a former Fortune 500 HR executive.