In an industrial company, I work in a team including a software maker. This is a very experienced person, and he has a great knowledge.
We are working on a project, and I have a task to do after him. However, we had meetings together. He has to do A on project, then I will do B on it. He asked me to help him to prepare some data for the project, in a specific format. Note that it is some sort of help from me to him, and not an assigned task but it is OK.
I am not experienced on this data, but I tried some preparation: it was always rejected with (it is my point of view there) little feedback. So I disturb him during task A a few times to present him new proposals of preparation, and it was always rejected.
And suddendly, a few days ago, we discuss on that ago and the "preparation of data for task A" has suddendly become a "preparation of data to help me understand the project".
So I made clear that I did not understand that way what he asked me, and that I will continue to learn about the project in order to achieve task B.
Problems are:
First problem: Before the explanation, while I was proposing different formats as I thought it was useful for task A, he said: "you're are disturbing me in my work".
Second problem: I think that guy, and some others in the team, are perceiving me as a "young and unreliable" guy, with no experience. He saying me to do that (the data preparation) in order to learn is typical because it did help me, but he was no transparent on that objective.
Questions are:
How to explain, in the future, to managers/other coworkers, that there was a misunderstanding (from him that nearly lied to me, but I am ready to say from both of us) that leads me to disturb him in his work? He might day I am the cause of him being late in his work (I took from his time nearly a day out of 2 weeks).
How to explain to managers, that were part of initial meetings, that the task of me preparing the data has been abandonned because I only use it as a way to learn and not as something to deliver?