What's the best piece of advice you were ever given?

[Robinson]

"Be nice to people, but don't let 'em shit on you."


I also like the advice Pete Blaber gives in his book:

"Don't get treed by a Chihuahua."

"Always listen to the guy on the ground."

And my favorite:
"When in doubt, develop the situation."

I have heeded all of those at various times with positive results.

[NEPAKevin]

You learn by listening not by talking.

Never ask or expect someone to do something you would not do yourself.

Never put you dick anyplace you would not put your tongue.

A smart monkey is a monkey that does not monkey with another monkey's monkey.

[FNFAN]

On drinking: You can only feel so good before you feel so bad.

On women: The container is important but what matters is the contents.

On women: You rarely get what you don’t ask for. Fortune favors the bold.

On women: If they don’t take good care of their feet they probably don’t take care of anything else.

[Glenn E. Meyer]

When I was about 9, my uncle told me to stop reading comics and read real books. Started me off on a path to a career and richer intellectual life.

[okie john]

“Bloom where you’re planted.”

I can’t remember where I first heard it in my Air Force career (might’ve even been as a cadet).
I got to do a lot of neat jobs over the decades, but first, I got to do a lot of boring, apparently thankless jobs (Mobility Officer, scheduler, and assistant Training Officer come to mind). I learned that every time I came to a new organization, I’d be given an opportunity to show my value (and attitude) before any of the “important” roles were offered. The “bloom where you’re planted” thing helped keep my mind in the right place.

I've made a lot of money and gotten a lot of promotions by asking for a shot at the work that other people didn't want to do. Opportunity is usually disguised as a shit detail.


Okie John

[JHC]

"Focus on your 25 meter target" The context was Army; don't be worrying about the longer range (time frame) goals, get this goal NOW taken care of.

[Jim Watson]

Kind of negative but that's the world my parents grew up in:

There are some people you just can't be nice to.

The Bible says to love thy neighbor as thyself. It doesn't tell you that you have to treat anybody better than yourself.

[Wendell]

I don't know about the 'best' advice (period), but the best work-related advice came from a supervisor.

We were in his office, discussing some kind of complaint about me, when (following something I'd said) he paused, shut off his voice recorder, and then (referring to our co-workers) said:

"Remember, these people are friendly, but they're not your friends."

That, I think, is the best work-related advice I've ever gotten.

[LittleLebowski]

My wife’s family was arguing/fighting amongst themselves (I’m told this is very normal for Latinos, told by a Latino) and my father told me to “shut up and stay out of it”.

[blues]

"Don't follow leaders. Watch the parkin' meters."