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Peter Fenzel and Matthew Wrather read an article on advice columns, and explore the features and dynamics of the genre. Pete and Matt actually have some large differences of opinion here. It’s like they’re from different realms or something!
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Further Reading
- “The Age of Peak Advice” from The New Yorker
- r/relationships on Reddit
- Mortal Kombat (2021) — Official Red Band Trailer on YouTube
Something that I’ve always found frustrating with advice in general is, as hinted at here and there in the podcast, is how it never has enough context. For example, being someone who has been working in my field longer than some of my colleagues have been alive and spent years teaching graduate courses, I have gotten a fair amount of “how should I (or my kid) get into the industry?” type questions. And I can almost guarantee that my background isn’t their background, and the economy I graduated into isn’t the economy they’re graduating into. I also had a disproportionate amount of help in making a choice. So would my advice even qualify as advice? Or is it just me telling my story and making some guesses?
The traditional exception, of course, is the low-hanging fruit of modern relationship questions, for which the answer almost always needs to be “no, she’s not waiting for you to make a flamboyant gesture that’ll make her uncomfortable. Leave her alone…”
I’m disappointed that Matt thinks that the Overthinkers and OTI community would make for poor therapy given how well the holiday donor meetup worked out. Sure, it might be tough to replicate that exact set of circumstances, but it was the mental boost I needed at the time and I don’t think I was the only one. Looking forward to more opportunities to intact with smart, funny friends and other fans of the same.
The thing is, we don’t take insurance.
Tomorrow on Gofundme: Help! I need an OTI membership.