So you probably know someone who can't help but give advice. Sometimes it's someone who's perfectly handy, & maybe you've asked them for advice before - like when a tree branch has fallen & you might need to chop the tree down, or if it's something to do with plumbing - but since then, they imagine every innocent comment you make is a cry for help. Or maybe it's someone who you know for a fact is a complete fuck-up & you can't believe what they're telling you - they could be sitting in a pool of their own filth & they'd give you advice on personal hygiene.
The first type of person is always a nice fellow. Their advice might even be fine, but shouldn't you ask for the advice before it's given? Here is perhaps a sample conversation probably not drawn from real life:
You: Hey, good to hear from you.
The Adviser: How are things up north?
You: Oh, I'm excited, it's going to snow tonight!
The Adviser: You'll want to be careful driving in that snow. Let me tell you the best techniques...
The second type of person is pretty self-explanatory, but they have another terrible trait (well, the first probably has, too) of giving you advice for a third person on behalf of whom (they imagine) you're seeking their expertise. For example, & again, certainly not something that has ever possibly happened in real life:
The Adviser: How's the wife?
You: Oh, she's fine, but she's a little overextended at work.
The Adviser: You should tell her what I do to keep my work & home life separate...
You yourself have doubtless given advice unsolicited many times in your life, but it's not a serial problem with you. With these kinds of people, it really is. & there's probably no good advice out there on how to deal with them - confronting them will just make them defensive - except perhaps - uh oh here's some unsolicited advice - just stay away from them.
No comments:
Post a Comment