How To Ask For Advice Without the Old 'Picking Someone's Brain'

Liz and Rico are advice givers by trade, but that doesn’t mean they’re equipped to give advice about how best to *ask for* advice.  

So, since getting the advice you need is a pretty important step in anyone’s work life, we called writer Anna Goldfarb, an expert on that subject. She wrote the article entitled, “The right way to ask ‘Can I Pick Your Brain?’” and is giving five ground rules for advice seekers in five-ish minutes. It’s a classic SFW segment we like to call “5-in-5.”

Then, we’re getting into Lingo Bingo, which includes some not-so-pretty office jargon like “cannibalize.” Graphic! And we’ll also hear from listener Pam, who’s having some trouble escaping an overly-talkative colleague.

Finally, listener Elizabeth, who was a caller from the show’s early days, has gotten a great job since her first chat with us. Now, she needs some advice on how to get more paid time off (A.K.A. our favorite version of time off).

As always, if you've got a burning workplace question and need some advice, don't hesitate to send us an email (that email, unsurprisingly, is also [email protected]). You can also find us on Twitter, we’re @SafeFor Work. Don't forget to follow our sage hosts on Twitter, too; they're @SSLiz and @RicoGagliano. And if you want to check out Liz’s other show, Satellite Sisters, you can find it on Apple Podcasts or Art19.