Skip to main content

Advice, Bad Advice, and Damned Advice

 

Advice, Bad Advice, and Damned Advice

Don Allen

 

Everyone gives advice, and almost everyone takes it now and then. Advice, though, is inherently incoherent, inconsistent, and inaccurate.  Now and then, it can be critical. But even the stingiest, coldest, or most loving of us give it freely. A glossary follows but first consider a few examples.

 

·        When you take advice, are you substituting another’s thinking for your own?

·        Sometimes I wish I followed my own advice. But nooooo! I took someone else’s advice. Wrong.

·        When you give advice and someone takes it, then are you not somewhat responsible for outcomes?

·        There have been times I rejected good advice because I didn’t like who was giving it.

·        Companies call in consultants to give advice, but the consultants seldom know the fine points of the business they are advising. People call in psychologists for the same reasons.

·        Ministers and priests are always giving advice, but usually only once a week. Moms and dads give advice, every day if you allow.

·        Schools have many professional advisors on life, but only a few have truly lived.

Glossary

Advice is a suggestion or recommendation offered by someone who should have more experience or knowledge than the person being advised. It can be given on any topic, from personal relationships to career decisions to financial matters.

 

Bad advice is any advice that is not based on sound reasoning or evidence. It can be advice that is harmful, misleading, or simply ineffective. Bad advice can come from anyone, including friends, family, celebrities, and even experts.

 

Damned advice is advice that is unhelpful, harmful, or even dangerous. It can be advice that is based on false information, outdated beliefs, or personal opinions. Damned advice can come from anyone, including friends, family, experts, and even strangers.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Please Comment.

Popular posts from this blog

UNCERTAINTY IS CERTAIN

  Uncertainty is Certain G. Donald Allen 12/12/2024 1.       Introduction . This short essay is about uncertainty in people from both secular and nonsecular viewpoints. One point that will emerge is that randomly based uncertainty can be a driver for religious structure. Many groups facing uncertainty about their future are deeply religious or rely on faith as a source of comfort, resilience, and guidance. The intersection of uncertainty and religiosity often stems from the human need to find meaning, hope, and stability in the face of unpredictable or challenging circumstances. We first take up the connections of uncertainty to religion for the first real profession, farming, noting that hunting has many similar uncertainties. Below are groups that commonly lean on religious beliefs amidst uncertainty.   This short essay is a follow-up to a previous piece on certainty (https://used-ideas.blogspot.com/2024/12/certainty-is-also-emotion.html). U...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Devil and Artificial Intelligence

 In Stephen Vincent Benét’s allegory, The Devil and Daniel Webster , the Devil comes to collect a soul, armed with the fine print of a contract and the inevitability of human weakness. Daniel Webster, the great orator, wins the day not by denying humanity’s flaws, but by appealing to its higher nature. The story warns us about the bargains we make and the price we might pay when power comes too easily. Consider the allegory of Goethe’s “ Faust” as a substitute if Benét’s story is unfamiliar. Today, Artificial Intelligence stands in a position uncannily similar to the Devil in the old tale. It offers dazzling speed, vast knowledge, and seemingly miraculous powers, always at just the right moment when we are tired, overwhelmed, or greedy for an advantage. It whispers I can solve your problems, do your work, make your life easier; just trust me. Playing the role of Daniel Webster is only these few pages, but it is you or me that have signed the contract. The “gifts” AI offers ar...
Post a Comment
Read more

Principles of Insufficiency and Sufficiency

   The principles we use but don't know it.  1.      Introduction . Every field, scientific or otherwise, rests on foundational principles—think buoyancy, behavior, or democracy. Here, we explore a unique subset: principles modified by "insufficiency" and "sufficiency." While you may never have heard of them, you use them often. These terms frame principles that blend theory, practicality, and aspiration, by offering distinct perspectives. Insufficiency often implies inaction unless justified, while sufficiency suggests something exists or must be done. We’ll examine key examples and introduce a new principle with potential significance. As a principle of principles of these is that something or some action is not done enough while others may be done too much. The first six (§2-6) of our principles are in the literature, and you can easily search them online. The others are relatively new, but fit the concepts in the real world. At times, these pri...
Post a Comment
Read more