A useful habit I’ve developed lately is stating my context first when asking a colleague a question about a specific project.
All of the companies I’ve worked in have, as a rule, had several projects going on at once. I’ll often be building a site that a designer has handed over a week or two before, so when I go to ask her a question about it, I will preface it with the pattern
“On [client name], [project name], [site section], [site page], …”
I’ve found that using this preface significantly reduces the amount of time my colleague is subject to the “bit confused, but trying to catch up” face. This drilling down gives her a logical path to follow to help her transition to the train of thought I’m asking her to switch to. And it’s only polite, seeing as I’ve just pulled her away from something else she was absorbed in.
It’s a bit like a verbal breadcrumb trail.