One of the things I've tried to teach people I've mentored over the past few decades is the principle of "Sharing is better than assuming." If you know something, share it with other people. Don't assume that they know something. If they do know, and you tell them, then you've only really confirmed what they already knew. If they don't know whatever it is you've helped them immensely and made whatever it is much more accessible.
Occasionally people will complain that you're being verbose and adding detail that they didn't need but in those cases you can usually just say "oh, that's just in case a [junior|manager|customer] sees it." People don't mind if you flatter them that the explanation was for other people.
It applies as much to development as it does to investment reporting, people management, delivery management, etc,
I have encountered a number of people who exhibit startling hostility at being told something they were already aware of. While I cannot currently recall a specific example, I strongly suspect I have previously felt this way myself.
While sharing may be better than assuming when only considering the local optimum, if your signal to noise ratio is bad enough, you will face an impairment to communication that simply wouldn't exist if you had been more selective.
When someone makes a search and lands on your tutorial, you are not giving him unsolicited information.
You would be if it's a tutorial on audio codecs and your tutorial starts with connecting the power cable to the computer, clicking 'log in', and don't forget to breathe!
> One of the things I've tried to teach people I've mentored over the past few decades is the principle of "Sharing is better than assuming." If you know something, share it with other people.
Definitely agree with this in principle. My son and I play pool (billiards) competitively. As you get better, almost nobody shares any tips because it's very competitive. I've taught him to be better than that and we have a great league team where everyone is helping the others grow.
In the mentoring (not just teaching) realm, I like to guide them into asking the questions that gets them to the answer they're looking for. When the connections in their mind light up, it's amazing.
> If they do know, and you tell them, then you've only really confirmed what they already knew.
Not necessarily. This opens you up to accusations of engaging in "mansplaining" which has broadened in definition over the years.
In addition to this, it opens you up to being thought of as a "know it all".
It's far safer, as far as office politics are concerned, to put on your coworkers the burden of asking you to clarify/explain/teach.
Would asking them if they already know or would like something explained be the best thing to do (rather than assuming one way or the other)?
That can also easily be misconstrued.