“What have you tried?”

After starting at Panic back in 2012, I quickly learned that my then-coworker and now-pal James was a fountain of knowledge. He’s the kind of guy who has a deep understanding about all kinds of things, and is very giving of what he knows. Early on, I picked up the habit of checking with him when some technical thing or other wasn’t working the way I expected: “I can’t connect to the thingamabob :(” “The whatchamacallit isn’t working :(” “How do I fix the doodad?” Without fail James’s first response would be a question, one that has shaped my thinking ever since: What have you tried? Four little words that’ll derail your whole deal if you aren’t ready 😅 Every single time I’d have to stop and think back through the steps I’d taken so far and why, what worked and what didn’t, etc. I’d type those up, or rattle them off to him in person, and then we’d start working through whatever malady ailed me at that moment. (Sometimes, I’d sheepishly admit I hadn’t tried anything and just mashed the…