03/07/2021
Helpful Hint: When you ask someone to help you fix something, make sure to provide a good summary of the problem right away.
Initial statement/questions
Don't do this:
"Hello, I think my computer is broken."
"I'm getting an error message."
"I heard other people say they were having problems with their phone, is mine having problems too?"
These types of opening statements/questions don't give enough detail. Anyone trying to help you would need to ask many follow up questions to really get started helping you. In many cases, this can become frustrating for whoever is assisting you and will cost both of you a lot of excess time. Here are some example of how those same questions could have been re-phrased for a better experience:
"Every time I open a video on my laptop, it shuts off immediately."
"When my computer boots up, I always get an error saying A fatal Javascript error occurred."
"I updated my iPhone 11 today and now my Air Pods don't work with my phone."
Pro Tip: This type of thinking applies to more than just computers and electronics. Other good places where this works is with doctors, plumbers, and mechanics 😉
