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RomeoStevens comments on Exercise in rationality: popular quotes, revisited - Less Wrong
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Comments (30)
reflexively inverting any advice you are given to see if it still sounds wise as a test for falsifiability is something I think Charlie Munger mentions doing.
I think that's somewhat missing the point of a lot of advice like that though. Often advice in the form of proverbs or popular quotes is not meant to be taken literally. It's meant to offer you a new angle from which to look at the problem.
Just because two quotes contradict each other, doesn't mean they can't both be good advice. If you think someone is being too rash, quoting a proverb like "discretion is the better part of valour" can be good advice. But if you think they are being too cautious, the opposite ("nothing ventured, nothing gained") can also be good advice.
Most advice is context dependent.
This is a (slight paraphrase of a) quote from a character who is offering a rationalization for cowardice. It wasn't intended as a positive thing in the original work.
I agree that context changes the effectiveness of the advice.
My disapproval stems from the watering down of advice to blanket generalities. Vague enough that everyone might glean something from it, but the lack of specifics can turn it into a casual, flippant throw-away of words in times where more purposeful advice serves better.
Yes, and people tend to hold proverbs in higher esteem than advice that people formulate in their own words. People expect the latter to be backed up by a lot of good arguments before they take it seriously.
Give an example?
https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-common-sayings-or-proverbs-that-contradict-each-other