All You Have To Do Is Ask by Wayne Baker - Review

It’s a sad fact, but in some workplaces, asking for help may have negative consequences. These workplaces lack psychological safety — a shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking. When teams lack psychological safety, people are afraid to bring up problems, ask questions, face tough issues, make mistakes, or do anything that makes them feel exposed and vulnerable (like seek help). Add high performance pressure, and people live in a constant state of anxiety—frantic to perform but afraid to try anything new or ask anyone for help.

All You Have To Do Is Ask focuses on the advantages of asking people for help and what we miss when we do not. The book highlights reasons why most of us don't ask for help and ways of remedying this problem.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THE BOOK
All You Have To Do Is Ask poses solid answers to the problem of asking. It points to the modern over-emphasis on individuality as one of the underlying problems that get in the way of us of asking for help.

The author also points out that most people underestimate a stranger's readiness to help and thus are reluctant to ask when in difficulty.

DISLIKES
Due to the nature of the subject matter, All You Have To Do Is Ask is a dry book. Reading it for pure pleasure is a tough ask. Also, the book glosses over people and companies who give generously as a pretext for not paying their taxes.

WHO IS IT FOR?
All You Have To Do Is Ask might interest those who are shy and introverted. There are many tips to pick up in this book that might help those of such disposition - a lot of which relates to learning which situations are most suitable for asking (especially in a workplace) and what not to ask, among other things.

Many thanks to Random House for the review copy.