[ascagnel_]

> We tend to have a habit of projecting what works for us, onto others.

I wish more people would understand this when giving advice -- what works for one case or one person is guaranteed to have many exceptions when you try to apply it to a larger population.

I'm a relatively new parent, and I've gotten to the point to where I hate when other parents give advice. Something that worked for your kid won't necessarily work for mine, and don't treat that case like it's my fault -- instead, qualify that your advice is based on your experience and your situation, not necessarily something universal.

[polishdude20]

Is it up to the giver of advice or the taker? In a way, the giver just wants to talk about their experience. The taker wants to use the advice. It seems more realistic to have the taker vet what's told to them online.

[ascagnel_]

The issue I have specifically is that advice givers tend to give advice either in an unprompted way or as if it will apply universally. For the post at the top of this thread, while it wasn't unprompted, it's positioned as if following the rules _will_ lead to you having better focus, when the realty of the situation is that they won't work for everyone. Something as simple as prefacing these rules as "this is what worked for me, maybe it'll work for you too" is enough to counteract this.