Know-Nothings

I am a person with very little patience, especially when it comes to stupid questions. By stupid questions I don't mean questions coming from those who are eager to learn, those who are inquisitive. Instead I define "stupid questions" as those that come from people too lazy to learn.

I feel like I'm faced by my "stupid question" dilemma nearly everyday at work. What makes it more frustrating is that it usually it comes from the same few mouths. Come to think of it, it's usually from the same mouth. I don't mind helping. In fact I am quite willing to do so. This is conditional though.

I understand that if you've never done a particular task before, you need someone to teach you how to do it. In this situation I am most understanding, of course. Then, as you do the task alone for the first few times, you may have follow up questions to clarify what I was saying in teh original lesson. That's perfectly acceptable in my book as well. However, when you've asked me the same question 16 times before, when you've failed to note my clarification time and time again, and I am busy trying to finish my own work please do not assume that I am ok with having to teach you the same lesson again. At this point, my patience wears very thin. Since I am so passive I go ahead and say the same exact thing I've told you a million times before even though it would be less painful for me to bang my head against the walls of my cubicle. There must be a better way to handle this situation without me completely losing my cool eventually.