Unsolicited Advice
Why wait for readers to ask questions before suggesting solutions? An advice column that cuts out the middleman.
Words don’t have meanings, they have uses
Don't ask "what does it mean?" but "what can you use it for?" This is fundamentally a much more true and useful way to think about words and definitions.
Why trouble comes in bunches
So a thing I do pretty often is catch the wrong tram and not realise until I've gone way past the point where the two tramlines diverge, and then have to walk a bunch of blocks across to where my proper tram is. And I swear this always
Add predictable distractions to your To Do list
After every Covid press conference, I'd spend a good 20 minutes worrying and discussing. Don't let it blindside you!
Make your failures a controlled retreat, not a rout
A controlled retreat is where you’re losing, so you gather your soldiers together in a defensive formation, and slowly, as safely as possible, withdraw from battle.
Don’t talk to the cops even if you’ve done nothing wrong: A lawyer explains every reason why it’s a terrible idea
You don’t know if you’re in trouble. You don't even know if you're lying or not. You can't even talk properly.
“If someone gifts you money, are they allowed to tell you what to do with it?"
Debt is a mental and emotional construct, not a tangible thing. There's a difference between technical debt and the emotion of indebtedness
I can't think of a single time when it would be appropriate to say "Be careful" to someone
People say it to people who are about to go on holiday and that is... what are you doing? They are trying to have a nice time and take a break. Tell them to have fun!
That time I wrote down every single object I own
Last weekend I did a big declutter and then did the mildly psychopathic thing of writing down everything I own in a spreadsheet.
Rec for fiction writers who are struggling to actually write
The Couch to 80k 8-week writing bootcamp is a free 20-minute podcast with, and this is the bit that makes it marvellous, timed writing sessions.
Fake smiles are real smiles: a more complicated view of authenticity
What people usually call a fake smile is a deliberate smile rather than a spontaneous one. I just... so strongly dispute the idea that deliberate communication is less real than instant reaction.