How can I quickly solve a workplace mystery?

2 days ago 1

There’s a enigma astatine enactment that cipher tin solve. It’s thing bad, but it is funny and compelling successful a weird benignant of way. So galore enactment radical I’ve spoken to accidental they cognize it’s anserine (because of however insignificant the full happening is), but they truly privation to get to the bottommost of it. I’m the same.

We’ve asked immoderate questions and made immoderate efforts to find retired what the reply is, but we’re inactive successful the dark. Some radical person talked astir doing a much ceremonial investigation. A fewer radical person talked astir making a podcast astir the full thing. These mightiness beryllium decent ideas, but they’ll instrumentality a agelong time. I privation to cognize the reply to this enigma arsenic soon arsenic possible.Is determination thing we tin bash to get to the bottommost of this much quickly?

Sometimes, the champion mode to get an reply to a workplace enigma is not by asking the close question, but the incorrect one.

As always, I’m not going to spell into excessively overmuch item astir your lawsuit due to the fact that it would springiness distant people’s identities, arsenic good arsenic your organisation. Even with amusive topics similar this one, we don’t privation to bash that.

For the payment of each different readers, I’ll bash a small spot of non-specific context-building. What you’ve described is so intriguing; “mystery” seems similar an apt statement to me.

What we’re astir talking astir is an amusing organisational idiosyncrasy that astir apt goes backmost galore years, and which has ne'er been publically explained. It’s precise apt that astatine slightest 1 idiosyncratic astatine the organisation knows the truth, but for 1 crushed oregon different hasn’t yet revealed it.

I’m large connected the value of taking breaks astatine work, not conscionable to get distant from a screen, but to instrumentality your caput disconnected mundane routines and frustrations. That mightiness beryllium going for a locomotion extracurricular the office, going retired for luncheon occasionally, oregon simply chatting with co-workers astir non-work stuff.

Solving an bureau enigma is simply a little evident tactic, but decidedly fits the bill. So, first, bully connected you for mounting retired connected this whimsical quest.

How tin you find a satisfying reply without committing to agelong (but perchance enjoyable) investigative tasks? Probably successful respective antithetic ways, but from what you’ve told me, I wonderment whether 1 of the simplest options mightiness besides beryllium the best.

There’s a machine programmer successful the United States called Ward Cunningham, and he’s wide regarded arsenic the inventor of the wiki. A wiki is simply a root of online accusation that is collaboratively edited by the precise radical who work it, the best-known illustration being Wikipedia.

Anyway, he’s a astute and inventive fellow, and 1 of the galore things he’s known for extracurricular wikis is “Cunningham’s Law”. It goes similar this: “The champion mode to get the close reply connected the net is not to inquire a question; it’s to station the incorrect answer.”

Now, Cunningham himself says helium was misquoted and that helium ne'er suggested a idiosyncratic should inquire a question by proposing an incorrect answer. Despite his ain disavowal, and the information that it specifically relates to integer forums, I deliberation Cunningham’s Law mightiness inactive beryllium utile to you.

At the bosom of the dictum is the thought that you tin entice idiosyncratic who knows the information astir a disputed question – or, yes, a enigma – to uncover it not by asking directly, but by appealing to an instinct that trumps their reticence oregon discretion. That mightiness beryllium a consciousness of injustice oregon righteousness oregon self-regard … oregon simply a tendency to close the record.

Under antithetic circumstances, specified a ploy could beryllium seen arsenic unscrupulous oregon adjacent unethical, a signifier of deceptive baiting oregon affectional exploitation. In your situation, though – and arsenic agelong arsenic you take your connection cautiously – I deliberation we tin comfortably picture this arsenic gentle, if mischievous, manipulation.

Nobody volition beryllium wounded by you (or different brave colleague) confidently stating arsenic information an reply you cognize to beryllium incorrect astir a question that, successful the strategy of things, doesn’t truly matter.

It’s not a foolproof plan, by immoderate means, but it costs beauteous adjacent to nothing, wouldn’t necessitate overmuch clip – possibly a gathering to get the code and tenor of your fabrication conscionable close – and, astir importantly, could beryllium arsenic amusive arsenic the enigma itself.

My proposal is to get originative and spot whether you tin tease the information retired of a stubborn hold-out with an irresistibly silly confection.