Rule 13 of 32 · Chapter III — Delighted by Everything
Ask the beginner's question in the room full of experts.
Why this rule exists
The question everyone is too embarrassed to ask is usually the one holding up the whole conversation. Expertise builds shared assumptions that nobody re-examines, and half of them are wrong or out of date. You also give cover to the three other people who were lost and silent.
In practice
When you don't follow something, say so plainly and immediately — no apology, no self-deprecating preamble. Ask what a term actually means, why the thing is done this way, what happens if it isn't. Then listen to the answer without pretending you already knew it.
When it doesn't apply
Don't burn a surgical team's attention mid-operation or a crisis call's minutes with a question you could answer yourself in five minutes afterwards. Timing is real; ask later, but do ask.