Mastering the Craft of Technical Questioning: The Key to Success as a Software Engineer

What is technical questioning?

As a software engineer, it's important to always be in a state of learning and questioning. Regardless of whether you're a beginner or a senior developer, there will come a time when you'll find yourself struggling to understand why your code isn't working as expected.

Technical questioning refers to the process of asking questions related to technical topics, such as software engineering, programming, and more, technical questions are designed to seek information, clarification, or help in resolving technical issues.

Effective technical questioning requires a combination of technical knowledge and strong communication skills to clearly express the problem, provide relevant context, and ask a well-crafted question.

How to ask technical questions

1. Summarizing the Question

   The first step to effective technical questioning is to create a concise and clear title that summarizes the issue at hand. This acts as a heading for your question and provides a quick overview of what you need help with.

2. Providing Context

   To help others understand your question better, it is important to provide relevant context and background information. This includes information about the situation you are dealing with and any parameters that may affect the answer.

3. If your question involves code, provide a minimal, reproducible example of the issue at hand. Avoid using screenshots and instead, express your question in text, which can help build your confidence in explaining complex technical concepts.

4. Share what you’ve already tried

   Sometimes your last attempt might be a step toward solving your problem. It is important to list what you have tried so that other people would have to debug it from start, and also it gives a clear and concise step of what the problem was to achieve.

5. Format, Lint, and Document Your Code

   No one would try to solve a bad code, try to give proper naming to the variables, comment on the code where needed, and have a general proper styling of the code. Follow proper naming and styling convections

6. Keep track of your question

   After asking a question, don’t just ghost the people that are trying to help you. Provide feedback. Tell them what worked, what didn’t work, and why. When your question has been answered, edit the original message and add: ✅ Solved.

   Why should you ask a technical question?

   1. Improving your questioning skills

      Asking well-crafted questions that spark helpful discussions and uncover brilliant answers is often as valuable as receiving the best answer

   2. Gaining a better understanding of the problem

      Posing a question requires you to think and explain your reasoning, leading to the examination and assessment of your issue

      This process may even result in discovering the solution to the problem

   3. Learning by answering questions

      Explaining what you know to others strengthens your knowledge and may uncover new insights

      Writing a clear and comprehensive answer requires attention to detail, leading to a deeper understanding of the subject

   4. Sharing knowledge with others

      Answering technical questions helps others and contributes to the growth of the community

   5. Staying up-to-date with the latest technologies and best practices

      Asking and answering questions keeps you informed of the latest advancements and helps you stay ahead in the industry.

Conclusion

Asking and answering technical questions is a crucial aspect of being a software engineer. By continually learning and questioning, you can improve your skills, gain a deeper understanding of the problems you face, and become a better developer.