Showerthought: Most people ask for local recommendations but ignore the follow-up questions

I used to think asking 'where should I eat' was enough. Then last month I saw a post where someone asked for a good mechanic in Portland, got 50 replies, but never responded to a single person asking what kind of car or what the issue was. The locals who actually knew their stuff were trying to help but got nothing back. Now I realize it's not just about asking, it's about giving details so people can actually help you. Seen anyone else do this?

2 comments

2 Comments

williams.robert8d ago

lol I used to be exactly the same way honestly. I'd just drop a "any good pizza places" and dip out. Then I saw this one thread where a person asked for help fixing their dryer, a guy who actually repairs them for a living asked what model and what it was doing, and the OP just vanished. Made me realize how much of a waste that is for everyone involved. You gotta give people something to work with, otherwise you're just getting generic answers that might not even apply to your situation. Now I try to over-explain my situation so people can actually help me find what I need.

taylor.mary8d ago

Ugh I read something the other day about how people treat forums like Google search bars instead of actual conversations lol. It basically said the really good answers come from people taking the time to share their specific experience, but you can't get that if you don't give any context. Makes you wonder how many great pizza spots or dryer fixes got missed because people just couldn't be bothered to stick around and talk.