{"id":33530,"date":"2018-12-09T11:49:42","date_gmt":"2018-12-09T19:49:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/?p=33530"},"modified":"2018-12-09T16:17:44","modified_gmt":"2018-12-10T00:17:44","slug":"how-asking-questions-can-help-your-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/gov-talk\/career-advice\/how-asking-questions-can-help-your-career\/","title":{"rendered":"How Asking Questions Can Help Your Career"},"content":{"rendered":"

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How Asking Questions Can Help Your Career<\/span><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” _builder_version=”3.0.74″ custom_padding_tablet=”50px|0|50px|0″ padding_mobile=”off”][et_pb_row use_custom_width=”on” custom_width_px=”1200px” custom_padding=”20px||0px|” custom_padding_tablet=”0px|||” column_padding_mobile=”on” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” parallax_method_1=”off” parallax_method_2=”off” admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ column_padding_mobile=”on” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Roger-Dean-Duncan.jpg” show_bottom_space=”off” align=”center” disabled_on=”on|on|” _builder_version=”3.18.1″ animation=”off” sticky=”on”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|on|” _builder_version=”3.18.1″ text_font=”PT Sans|on|||” text_text_color=”#02b875″ text_font_size=”20″ text_line_height=”1.2em” header_text_color=”#000000″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”center” max_width=”140px” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”20px||0px|”]<\/p>\n

RODGER DEAN DUNCAN<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Dr. Rodger Dean Duncan is a bestselling author of LeaderSHOP<\/g>: Workplace, Career, and Life Advice From Today\u2019s Top Thought Leaders. In addition to his work in government, he has taught at three major universities and was head of global communication at Campbell Soup Company.<\/p>\n

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Early in my career, I was an advisor to cabinet officers in two White House administrations. I then worked for several members of the U.S. Senate. Although this was my only experience in government work, it gave me a good taste for career management. After all, in those posts, I was a political appointee with virtually zero job security beyond my own competence. On any given day I could have been fired for wearing the wrong tie to work.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the private sector, I later discovered\u2014again\u2014that the trajectory of my career was largely up to me and no one else. Although I certainly had a few good mentors and a lot of helpful colleagues, I and I alone was in charge of the direction my career would take.<\/span><\/p>\n

So I learned to ask questions. <\/span>Lots<\/span><\/i> of questions. When I saw someone succeed in a particular job, even a job that I knew would never interest me, I inquired about the needed skills, how the skills were acquired, and how that job intersected with similar work. When someone seemed to manage a tough workplace situation, I asked about relationship building and trust building. When someone experienced a job failure, I tactfully requested a briefing on what went wrong and what might have helped avert the misstep.<\/span><\/p>\n

In other words, I was a constant learner. I still am. I frequently seek out people who have interesting insights into the world of work and careers. I ask them a lot of questions. And they\u2019re usually generous with their time in responding. (For examples of these highly-informative conversations, see my book <\/span>LeaderSHOP: Workplace, Career, and Life Advice From Today\u2019s Top Thought Leaders<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i>)<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are three of the many career questions I\u2019ve pondered over the years, along with some helpful insights from people whose opinions are well worth considering.<\/span><\/p>\n

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My grandfather had an expression for that approach: \u201cYard-by-yard it\u2019s hard, but inch-by-inch it\u2019s a cinch.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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RODGER DEAN DUNCAN<\/p>\n

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How can I best prepare for my \u201cdream job\u201d if I\u2019m not happy with my current position?<\/span><\/h4>\n

Jon Acuff, author of <\/span>Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job & Your Dream Job<\/span><\/i>, advises people to \u201cfall in like\u201d with the job they don\u2019t love.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPeople who are miserable all week have a hard time hustling on the weekend,\u201d he says. \u201cIf you\u2019re going to spend 40-50 hours a week doing a job, you set yourself up for failure if you refuse to make it as good as it can be while you\u2019re there. It\u2019s not about falling in love with it. It might always be a job you only like. That\u2019s okay. But don\u2019t accept \u2018misery\u2019 as the only option you have until you find your dream job.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes, he says, adjusting your attitude and expectations about your current job can even help you discover a dream job hidden at the place where you already work.<\/span><\/p>\n

What are some good ways to deal with a boss who\u2019s incompetent?<\/span><\/h4>\n

You don\u2019t have to let a poor boss derail your career. Mary Abbajay, author of <\/span>Managing Up<\/span><\/i>, offers the following approaches:<\/span><\/p>\n