Thought Exercise: 5 Ways to Ask for Help

July 23, 2021

Need help but don't know where to start? Here are 5 ways you can ask for what you need.

For today’s Thought Exercise, we’re going to discuss five ways to ask to ask for help. These ideas are from Pamela Slim’s book, Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together.

Slim reminds us with this exercise that, “Asking for help, and giving help on a consistent basis, is the best thing you can do for your body of work. It does’t have to be a lonely grind; it can be a rich exchange of ideas, information, and resources.”

Without further ado, here are five ways Pamela Slim says you can ask for help:

1. Describe what you need help with in clear language
2. Send a Tweet (make sure your question is clear, brief, and includes ‘thanks!’)
3. Use LinkedIn Answers (this doesn’t exist anymore, Slim’s book was written in 2013, never the less, just try asking on LinkedIn which is literally a community of professional experts)
4. Attend free calls and webinars - Slim suggests companies, coaches and consultants are a good place to start - they are trying to expand their business, after all.
- I have also noticed businesses like book stores and schools often free programming on occasion (ex, talks from authors). A lot of social media and organizational apps like Trello, Later, LinkedIn, and Asana have blogs and free webinars where you can glean some good advice.
5. Lastly, “ask friends or colleagues from your professional organizations or programs”
- from Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together by Pamela Slim

I would also encourage you to volunteer - if you volunteer for a cause you care about, you’ll meet like-minded individuals who you can collaborate and discuss your ideas with. Myself, I have volunteered for WIA and WIFTV and have connected with some truly incredible professionals as a result.

The only caveat I would say for Slim’s list is if you’re in Animation like me, make sure you read your NDA thoroughly first before you ask your question - there might be a degree of specificity that you can or cannot speak to, etc.

If nothing else, Slim reminds us that, “the key to getting great help is to make the request clear and brief. Write your questions in a form that will allow someone to give a brief and specific answer.”

She gives us a helpful example:

Good Technique: ‘Hey Pam, do you know anyone who specializes in local business marketing strategies?’
Bad Technique: ‘Hey, Pam, how should I market my business?’”
- from Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together by Pamela Slim

I’ve said elsewhere in A Course in Production that while Production in the Animation industry is a leadership role and a position of power, we are not meant to have all the answers all of the time. I still believe this is true, and in fact, many career coaches and businesses writers like Pamela Slim say that vulnerability and admitting when you need help can actually be a great way to engage with your teams, networks, and grow your skill set.