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I’m looking to summarize an idea into as few words as possible — to make it as concise as possible. The idea is to ask others for help (putting ego aside), value others’ input, listen to others, learn from others.

What I have so far is “Ask for help and learn from others”, but I’m not that satisfied with it. I’m trying to make a list of rules, such as “be virtuous” or “seek adventure” or “be kind”, and this particular phrase doesn’t really fit in well. Any other suggestions?

And please ask me to clarify if necessary. I’ve been running this through my head for a while, so it might not be clear as I think it is.

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  • The first thing I thought of was "to mentor a protege," but it sounds like you're looking for the inverse of that concept. Too bad "mentorable" isn't a word.
    – J.R.
    Commented Dec 27, 2012 at 3:03
  • Yeah...if mentorable was a word, I think that would capture the essence of what I'm trying to say
    – pauliwago
    Commented Dec 27, 2012 at 3:09
  • @pauliwago You might consider....not using....all those...dots.................
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Dec 27, 2012 at 3:11
  • What is this for, some sort of personals ad or résumé? Have you considered trying Writers.SE instead?
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Dec 27, 2012 at 3:15
  • Haha no, it's for myself. Reminders for things I should do more on a daily basis. I will look into writers SE!
    – pauliwago
    Commented Dec 27, 2012 at 3:43

3 Answers 3

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You could say Be cooperative (“Ready to work with another person or in a team; ready to cooperate”), or could say Be collaborative. To collaborate means “To work together with others to achieve a common goal”. Another possibility is Be teachable. (One sense is “Willing to receive instruction or to learn”.)

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  • Too broad, too broad.
    – Kris
    Commented Feb 2, 2013 at 12:19
  • @Kris, I agree these terms don't specifically denote asking others for help, but being cooperative and collaborative typically includes both providing and receiving help. In the context of a list with entries like “Be virtuous”, “Seek adventure”, and “Be kind”, it is reasonable to express “Ask for help and learn from others” via “Be cooperative” or “Be collaborative”.
    – James Waldby - jwpat7
    Commented Feb 2, 2013 at 15:46
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The more popular phrase would be "benefit from others' experience"

Alternatives commonly heard:
"leverage peer knowledge"
Less formal: "(always) ask around, get help"

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You might consider:
Be open and willing to learn

open :adj 7b. Willing to consider or deal with something

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