Unsolicited Advice
Why wait for readers to ask questions before suggesting solutions? An advice column that cuts out the middleman.
Develop food rituals for the foods you eat regularly
In an experiment by the University of Minnesota, people enjoyed eating raw carrots more if they knocked on a table before eating it.
Unsolicited recommendations are the same thing as unsolicited advice
Recommendations are advice, you’re literally advising that they watch/listen/read something. Unsolicited advice is obnoxious but tempting.
Concept: “Vulnerability hangover”
It’s the jolt of fear/shame/angst that you get when you do something that exposes yourself a little — which can be anything from telling a loved one a long-hidden secret, to tweeting something mildly honest.
Who gets to decide if something’s 'unforgiveable’?
He never spoke to her again; when she died, half a century later, he refused to visit her deathbed or attend her funeral. “Tell her,” he said, “that she never knew how much I valued what she broke.”
My all-time favourite advice column letter (always reduces me to tears)
"I’m 15, and three years ago I was adopted by my Uncle “John” and his husband “Greg.” I was so happy when they adopted me—and then I kind of lost my mind. I behaved terribly..."
A better way to do 'emotion-processing' journalling
The key difference: destroy the pages immediately afterwards in a very thorough way, and pay attention while you’re doing it so the memory is locked in. Destroy them even if you wrote something bland.
Thinking in blocks of time
I have very little external structure, being mostly a freelancer, and a lot of projects and ideas I want to get done. I need a way to make the general morass of undifferentiated work and obligations manageable.
Decide on your own key life anniversaries and celebrate them
It feels good to have your calendar marked out with some days that are meaningful to you instead of just ones chosen by other people.
Store your cups in a drawer, not a cupboard
This will only be a small improvement to your life, but it will be an objective and tangible improvement, and who is turning that down these days?
Treat your To Do list like a tech tree
You never look at a skill /tech tree and go “uggghhh I can’t believe I haven’t got any of this done yet.” It’s exciting that you still have so many improvements to unlock.