Ask HN: Can't You Just "

2 points by throwaway3563 2 years ago | 4 comments

"Can't you just do X?"

Anyone else get annoyed at this question sometimes when trying to find a solution to some problem? It's borderline insulting sometimes, as the word "just" implies that I overlooked the simple, obvious way to do something. Sometimes it comes from someone who is lacking the nuances of some problem, and hasn't looked into it beyond the surface level, which makes it all the more aggravating. I take very little personally at work, but this one gets on my nerves to no end.

Yeah, I would have done that if it were feasible/maintainable/wouldn't leave a can of worms for someone else to decipher. It's not like I actually LIKE to create more work for myself. I'm not doing it X way because it's not the correct way, or it will cause more problems in the future.

uberman 2 years ago |

Can you just accept that you dont have all the answers to every problem and someone else might have the experience or insight that makes a seemingly difficult problem trivial?

:-p

People want or have been instructed to help and you might reframe thier attempt by assuming the best of intentions.

Eridrus 2 years ago |

I have taken to editing my work messages to remove all instances of the word just when I notice them for this exact reason. It adds no information and is needlessly dismissive.

HN comments are worth what you paid for them though, so can't you just get over it? :p

zero-sharp 2 years ago |

I think this depends on where the advice is coming from. Is it a peer? Is it a manager?

kwertyoowiyop 2 years ago |

Wait until you get married.