Is "I don't know" or "I'm not sure" an option?

well i answered the discussion confidently because i try to pick the one i knew well about it and i try to avoid the one that use facts like the current issues with articles and politics..ya know since i'm 18 thereis nothing much i knew bout all that kind of stuff..frankly i always respond well rather than just saying i guess or i think that.....

I honestly don't try to participate in discussions that I have no idea about at all. I would end up just typing one or two sentences and that alone is alredy embarrassing for me. It would be better that I know something about the topic and then post my comments about it. Simply guessing and having no basis to whatever it is that I am typing to a discussion that I don't know would simply make me feel weird. Perhaps if the topic just made me interested, I guess I'll read some of the comments that other members have already posted. From there, maybe I would develop my own ideas about the matter.

I never answer a post for which I know nothing or just don't care. Sometimes I even ignore a post for which it would take me too long to answer. I know that's probably not nice, but it's honest.

hi theresa, well, i think if you don't know the answer to a certain discussion,better eresearch it first or better leave it and move on to another discussion. i know,it's on the mylot guidelines not to respond with this kinds of responses. even in our daily lives,i know it is not certain to instruct people to certain areas and say you don't know. it's kinda annoying especially when the discussions are really important. so if you don't know the answer just research first to know some ideas on the topic to make the discussion make more relevant and lively.not just saying "i don't know,i just passed by" what kind of excuse,right?

I usually answer only discussions that are pretty clear to me, but when I get comments that are not clear to me, I research on what the comment could be about. It is in the nature of my job to do research, and we were trained to never say "I don't know". So, I research.

Greetings Theresa.. :) I don't really respond to posts or discussion in which I am not that much aware of, because I try to avoid any misunderstanding or another topic being deleted. Though I am quite new here, there's already one deleted yesterday. If I'm not much familiar with the topic, I might just read it and learn from, rather than respond to it without giving any clear explanation on my opinion.:)

I never give a response if I am "clueless" this against the myLot guidelines under the the Don'ts: give meaningless responses to try and boost your rating. I always research and give the link to any article or source I have used to substantiate my post as I know only too well that I have some myLot users who seem to be waiting to pounce on any posting I make if I have not posted the link to my source.

I don't respond normally. If the discussion has made me curious, I might look something up and see if I learn anything...

Sometimes I see an interesting topic that I know nothing about and respond saying exactly that so that I can then go back and see what tohers said and learn something. I usually respond to those topics where I have personal experience to offer and rarely a topic which needs the help of a search engine. Surely whoever started that post could use the search in the first place? If I'm not sure or I don't know then I don't respond just to say so. I get enough posts deleted without adding them to my numbers too

Hey Theresaaiza! I do sometimes respond to discussions that I am not quite sure how to answer, but I always start off my response by saying so! I say what I think or feel anyway! If I totally don't have any opinion at all or totally have no idea or thought about the subject, then I obviously won't even bother wasting the posters or my time! Sometimes you think you don't exactly know what to say, and then the more you think about it you think you might have a thought or something that just might fit in or be slightly helpful so you take the chance and respond! But, I only do that after making sure the poster knows that I am just "going to give it a shot"!

I always want to answer discussions here that suits my interest. I prefer opinionated topics or suggestive topics rather than questions looking for a fact. I even close a topic after opening it as long as I find it boring or uninteresting. Questions from people here that just needs answers are fine with me as long as we will not argue with a fact. There is no room for argument if you simply ask "Is the earth the center of the universe?" something like that. So I do not feel embarrass even at some point I may have said something wrong as long as I am not questioning a truth.

We can all come up with "I don't know" or "I'm not sure" as a reply to any question. It is the coward's way out. You are not agreeing or disagreeing. You are not offering your opinion in any way. To answer so vaguely is to not answer at all.

It depends on where you want to answer. I remember when I was working as am employee, to utter these words was sin. You didn't have that liberty to escape by just saying I don't know or I'm not sure. Instead we need to answer "I'll just figure out and report". Although I don't know or I'm not sure carries the frank answer and shows us how honest we are that just doesn't work in the professional work. For any other situation, you can just answer any of the above-mentioned quotes and escape. No issues.