People will Judge, People will Laugh

Have you ever wanted to ask something, but been to afraid of someone thinking it is a dumb question, or make fun of you for asking it? Of course, everyone has. but what did you do in that situation? Did You speak up, stay silent, did you figure out what you needed to know or were you still lost at the end of the day? At some point in your life you’ve probably tried hiding your confusion at one point or another but what should you really do? It can be hard to be the only one or the first one to ask a question. It almost feels as if you’re standing alone, or others are silently judging you saying things like “how did they not know that?” or “OH MY GOD! That was such a stupid question”. I used to be the kid who was scared to death, to ask questions until one day I had to move past that.

I took me years to gain the courage and the confidence to speak up when I have questions, comments, or concerns. It was always a daunting challenge to me. “What if everyone laughs?” ” What if people judge me?” is all that would go through my head. until I joined my Fire 1&2 course this past fall. The class is 3 hours every Monday and Tuesday along with 8 hour days on Saturdays So everything is fast pace and if you get lost it’s up to you to speak up and ask questions. After a month into the class I started falling behind and having some issues in the classroom portion of the class so the head instructor held me after class and talked to me. He asked me what was wrong and I told him in all honesty the class was confusing me and I was getting lost. And he told me a line I’ll never forget “The only stupid question is the one you don’t ask, people will always judge others, people will always laugh at those who don’t understand what they already know. But that shouldn’t stop you from learning and growing on your own. If you have a question speak up, who cares what anyone else thinks because the point of this class is for YOU to learn.”

The more I thought about what my instructor told me the more I realized it applied to a lot more than just class. So I started small, The next class I asked 1 question, and to my surprised no one judged me, or laughed, or anything! So the next class I asked a couple more, and then it turned into a growing skill set. Im not going to lie, theres been times that people laughed, and times that people acted as if it were a stupid question.but I always told myself that it was my knowledge, and it was worth asking.

So next time you’re in class and you need help, don’t be afraid. Speak up, don’t let fear stop you from learning and growing personally. I know people are often scared to put themselves out there, in fear of ridicule or for some, fear of the answer. I can’t control your life or actions but I can encourage people to reread that line my instructor told me and think, people will judge, people will laugh, whats the point of being confused when all you’d need to do is just ask!

Photo by Marco Bellucci on Foter.com / CC BY