Reddit user Beatrix Kiddo asked a simple question, What’s a piece of advice that old people like to give that is absolutely useless in 2023?
It’s a simple question, but sometimes the simplest queries lead to some interesting answers. And for me this is personal. One of my kids is about to graduate high school and the other is about to turn 21. What I don’t want to do is saddle them with junk advice.
I know what you’re probably thinking, Don’t sweat it. They’re not going to listen to you, anyway.
Ok, fine. But I still want to know what not to say. I don’t want to sound like a fossil from the Antediluvian Age of Reagan Tax Cuts.
Here are some of the responses.
If you want a job at the hospital, they probably won’t advertise, you’ll have to go in and look at the bulletin board- heard this 5 hours ago.
– Classic -Month 5184
Anytime they want to give word-of-mouth driving instructions.
I just patiently listen… then look up the address.
– Darknighten89
Pay all cash for the house, it’s easier to get it that way.
– scoutyscout12
Learn to balance your checkbook and you’ll stop being poor.
– 11061995
Company loyalty is rewarded. Be the first to arrive and the last to leave.
– Least – Feedback – 597
If a boy is mean to you, that means he likes you!
– SuitableNegotiation5
You can be anything you want if you work hard enough.
– tellmetwice1
What I’m surprised to see is that there weren’t any, “Don’t trust any *insert people of color.* I remember being 9 and in the backseat of my parent’s car. My Dad was badmouthing people who are Black. Being the cheeky kid I was I said, “That doesn’t sound right.” To which my Mom replied, “Your father was in the war. He knows.”
That was horrible advice from an elder that many of us probably heard at one time or another.
(BTW, the war in question was the Korean War.)
I chose not to pursue the topic any further.
What I’ve discovered in my 54 years of being alive is that when you hit a certain age and you don’t make an effort to stay plugged into the zeitgeist, you’re going to say stuff like, “All you need in life is a lucky rabbit’s foot, a gallon of moxie, and a firm handshake.”
That being said, one of my crowning achievements in life is figuring out how to manage to shake hands with dudes who seem intent on crushing unsuspecting hands.
What’s the worst advice you ever got?
Thanks for stopping by! In case you want a chuckle, how about checking out how this professor was fired for teaching about Uranus.
*All images courtesy of Unsplash.com