How many times have you been given advice by someone, only to find out later that the advice was not helpful? Many common pieces of advice are not exactly the words of wisdom we thought they were.
This week on Twitter, people are sharing the worst advice they’ve ever gotten. Many of these are so old that they could be a cliche. You’ve most likely been given these pieces of advice from a family member or a friend or from a framed piece of art sold at TJ Maxx. But maybe you’ve never really thought about how useless most of them are.
Enjoy these useless pieces of advice and maybe takes some notes so you know what not to do.
The thread started on Twitter when Josie Duffy Rice requested people share the worst advice.
The rule was that it had to be common phrases that people say regularly.
She kicked it off by sharing her favorite piece of bad advice.
But it also could get really messy.
Of course, marrying someone who feels like your best friend can be great! But marrying someone who is already your best friend could mean losing your best friend if it doesn’t work out. Rom-coms may tell you differently, but don’t marry someone just because they are your best friend.
After she shared her favorite piece of bad advice, people started chiming in with theirs.
The thread really makes you think about the advice people give all the time without really considering if it’s actually helpful.
This advice might work for some people.
But the reality is, most people don’t notice the person who works hard and never calls attention to themself, they take advantage of them.
Ah, the old “do what you love” advice.
Even if your job is something you love, it’s going to feel like work sometimes.
This advice can make people feel like you don’t really love their work if it isn’t fun all the time. Sometimes work is just work.
Someone has definitely said this to you before.
You actually can love other people even if you don’t 100% love yourself.
Who loves themselves 100% of the time? That’s impossible!
And many people pointed out this implies people with mental illnesses don’t deserve love.
And not to mention all women (and men) who are taught from birth that they aren’t good enough unless they have the body of a supermodel.
Don’t do this!
Can you imagine if we all lived every day like it was our last?
Nobody would get anything done, we’d all be skydiving and confessing our love to the Starbuck barista who makes us lattes every morning.
Ugh, yes this.
This teaches girls it’s a compliment if boys treat them badly. How messed up is that?
This is very common marriage advice.
Sometimes you are literally arguing because you are tired and sleep and time apart will fix it.
So go to bed angry if you want.
And wake up refreshed!
Every elementary school had a poster of this.
But not everyone’s dreams are possible. Not everyone is going to be a rockstar or a professional football player.
At some point, you have to give up on your dreams and do something more practical.
It’s not bad, it’s just a reality.
Just because people are old, doesn’t mean they know more than you.
Respect is a two way street.
Relationships can be hard.
But people often stay in bad relationships because they think they are supposed to always be hard work.
This one is for parents.
Um, no.
There are plenty of minutes you definitely do not have to enjoy.
See above gif.
If willpower was enough, we’d all be perfect human beings.
But obviously, we are not.
This is particularly bad advice.
Not only does it assume everyone believes in God, but it also belittles peoples’ problems.
It’s also just kind of a mean thing to say.
Do people not know how babies work?
Oh ok, sure, I’ll just nap 15 times a day and in the middle of this Target parking lot.
This is another mean one.
It’s not helpful at all, and it dismisses someone’s problems.
This is 100% true.
Mushrooms are gross and I have not grown into them!
Sure, sometimes this is true.
But it’s the exception, not the rule.
Some people do badly in school and just keep on doing badly.
It’s not an excuse to slack off.
Yes, this.
Oh wow, this is so helpful.
Oh hey, be careful!
I mean, you know, next time.
This advice can be dangerous.
Also, it might not follow and you might need to make a new plan– that’s just the truth.
Another one for those parents out there.
In addition to this, sometimes we are the ones who aren’t doing our best! You don’t have to do your best all the time!
You don’t get to choose your family.
And sometimes they are jerks.
Yeah, this would be weird.
I’d love to be a zookeeper, but I’m not going to show up for work covered in elephant poop.
This one has never been true.
Words can hurt worse than physical pain, we all know that.
Motherhood does not necessarily come naturally.
This not only puts pressure on moms to be perfect, but I think anyone who ever had a parent knows they often make tons of mistakes.
My personal favorite.
This applies to so many things: finding a relationship, getting a new job, getting pregnant.
In general, people love to tell you it will happen when you aren’t trying, as if they will make you stop caring about the thing you want? How can you even do that?
