I want to be helpful, so I’ve thought a lot about how to do that. Here’s a simple hierarchy that I’ve come up with. I call it the Helpfulness Ladder and encourage everyone to try to take a step up when helping others.

  1. Unhelpful: Ignoring or misleading.
  2. Minimally Helpful: Acknowledges but offers no real help.
  3. Somewhat Helpful: Vague or incomplete.
  4. Moderately Helpful: Accurate and straightforward.
  5. Highly Helpful: Detailed and clear.
  6. Extremely Helpful: Proactive and supportive.
  7. Exceptionally Helpful: Empowering and forward-thinking.

This framework helps assess the quality of assistance and encourages aiming for higher levels of helpfulness when appropriate.

The Helpfulessness ladder will help us all ascend

Exploring the Helpfulness Ladder with an example

Work is a team sport, and we are all more productive with help.

Imagine someone asks, “How much did we spend on Marketing in May 2024?”

The levels of helpfulness in responding to this question can vary widely depending on the depth, quality, and appropriateness of the response. Here’s the Helpfulness Ladder for this scenario, ranging from unhelpful to extremely helpful:

Level 1: Unhelpful (Actively Unhelpful)

  • Response: Ignoring the question, providing a dismissive answer, or responding with misinformation.
  • Example: “Figure it out yourself,” or providing incorrect details that lead to confusion.

Level 2: Minimally Helpful (Basic Acknowledgment)

  • Response: Acknowledges the question but offers little or no meaningful assistance.
  • Example: “I’m not sure,” without any attempt to assist further.

Level 3: Somewhat Helpful (Surface-Level Help)

  • Response: Provides a general or vague answer that might help but lacks detail or specificity.
  • Example: “I think the file is on the shared drive, but I don’t know where exactly.”

Level 4: Moderately Helpful (Adequate but Generic Help)

  • Response: Offers a straightforward answer that directly addresses the question but doesn’t go beyond what’s asked.
  • Example: “The file you’re looking for is in the Marketing folder on the shared drive.”

Level 5: Highly Helpful (Thoughtful and Detailed Help)

  • Response: Provides a thorough and accurate answer tailored to the question, ensuring clarity.
  • Example: “The file is in the Marketing folder on the shared drive, under the 2024 Q2 Reports subfolder. Let me know if you need help accessing it.”

Level 6: Extremely Helpful (Proactive Assistance)

  • Response: Provides a detailed answer and offers additional proactive assistance to ensure the issue is fully resolved.
  • Example: “The file is in the Marketing folder under the 2024 Q2 Reports subfolder. I’ve emailed you the direct link just in case. Let me know if you need help interpreting the data.”

Level 7: Exceptionally Helpful (Empowering and Anticipatory Help)

  • Response: Provides a detailed answer, additional assistance, and anticipates future needs or related issues.
  • Example: “The file is in the Marketing folder under the 2024 Q2 Reports subfolder. I’ve emailed you the link. I also included a guide to accessing other quarterly reports, in case you need them for future projects. Let me know if you’d like to go over the data together!”

I hope that the Helpfulness Ladder can promote intentionality, empathy, and effectiveness in interactions. By visualizing helpfulness as a progression from minimal to exceptional support, individuals can grow personally and professionally, foster a more collaborative environment, and get more done.