I ask this because I think sometimes I find myself looking for an answer instead of thinking why it is happening.
I think it's fine to look for answers, provided you absorb that knowledge and add it to your toolbelt, rather than just look it up again next time :)
Mark
formerly known as M
I feel like I am missing a bit of context. Are you a developer? I assume you're not suggesting to ask other people for the solutions to all the problems without looking into them yourself.
You should look into issues yourself first because 1) you may find the solution and not need to ask, 2) you will gather enough context to ask effectively and get a good answer, 3) you will learn more about the code, 4) you will learn general problem solving skills, 5) it may be your job.
But you shouldn't do that for too long! In my limited experience, it is more common for people to be told to ask questions sooner. People like to dig into things and be independent, but spending too much time costs too much money.
So after having a look for a while, you should ask someone else, because it may be many times faster, and in the end its the goal to get something finished in reasonable time. After staring at the screen for 20 minutes, adding another hour does not triple your learning.
So in the end, it's all a matter of balance and context. You don't immediately pass all your problems to others. You also don't spend 6 hours on something your neighbor could help you do in 5 minutes. Usually you don't ask someone to help you for 2 hours if it would have taken you 2.5 hours alone. If you've only looked for 5 minutes but you are sure its out of your league but your colleague knows, you ask immediately. The extreme cases are common sense, but it'll take some time to find the balance.