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You can make people feel vulnerable. The moment you ask for directions, you reveal that you are lost. Seeking assistance can feel like you are broadcasting your incompetence. New research suggests young children don't seek help in school, even when they need it, for the same reason.

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From what I've seen, this is no different for adults. Getting adults to ask for help is really difficult, and I've given up trying to pursued it (inorganically), in the workplace. On the other hand, getting adults to give "XY Problem" [1] fueled demands is very very easy.

1. https://xyproblem.info

Developing the habit of repeatedly asking people for help and then taking it when they give it will fix this very quickly. You just have to be willing to go first. People feel much better about asking someone for help if they have given that person help in the past.

I think this works very well for someone working directly in your domain, but doesn't work so well when you're a domain expert, outside of the others normal domain, since you can have a very small general, or mostly unidirectional specific, overlap.

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