Vent: New hires keep asking me for advice before they even try the task themselves

I've been at my office job for about 6 years now and I keep seeing kids fresh out of college walk straight to my desk asking how to do something they've watched me do a hundred times. Yesterday a new guy spent 20 minutes asking questions about a simple data entry step that would have taken him 5 minutes to figure out if he just clicked around. Am I being too harsh or should people just try stuff on their own first before asking for help?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jessica1mo ago

Set a boundary right off the bat - tell them to try it for 15 minutes first and come back if they're still stuck, that way they learn by doing.

kaib181mo ago

Set my daughter up with that exact rule when she was learning to drive, lol. First time she backed into a snowbank and came running inside like the car was on fire. Told her to go try getting it unstuck for 15 minutes before asking for help. She figured out the shovel and some kitty litter on her own. Kids just need that little push to realize they can handle more than they think.