This was prompted by a Doper in a ‘Name My Baby’ thread that advice or what-should-I-do? threads are useless because the person who asks for it never takes the advice, and instead goes and does whatever they really wanted to do in the first place.
I was thinking about this, and remembered a thread I posted way back when I was still **nichol_storm ** about how I was depressed over my boyfriend dumping me, and another guy tried to hook up with me. I was so down and out I was seriously considering it, but asked for advice. The overwhelming majority of replies told me not to do it, or at least to decide on a clear mind. I did a search but couldn’t find this thread in the archives.
I never had sex with him. Would I had I not asked the SDMB? There’s no way for me to know what I would have chosen. But the Dopers said loud and clear what I needed to hear – that this guy was trying to take advantage of me, and that I deserved better than some sleazy booty call. In a way I already knew this, but I needed to hear it from an unbiased source, someone who could look at the situation from the outside and say, “This guy is no good for you.”
So there. One example of heeding Doper advice. I believe it worked out for the best, too.
I found out about the Amby Baby Hammock in a “What Do I Need For a Baby” thread about 10 weeks ago. It’s not sold in any store I’ve seen, so I wouldn’t have found out about it without The Dope. It serves our needs perfectly, including the need for a truly portable baby sleeper that can be used on rough ground for a two week camping trip with an 8 week old baby.
And this week I found out I could freeze my leftover wine for cooking!
I don’t think I’ll post a “Do you like this baby name” thread, though. The answer is inevitably “NO!” and it really only matters if I like this baby name.
I recently asked for advice on questions I should ask when buying land–I asked pretty much all the questions people suggested (exception for “Is it an Indian burial ground?”. I’d already done research on it, so it wasn’t like I was relying exclusively on the SDMB, but they mentioned a couple things I hadn’t thought of, and the advice was certainly appreciated.
I bought two books recommended to me on a “Human Evolution” thread… haven’t read them yet though to say if the advice was well given.
I suppose most of the time people just need reinforcement of what they probably are likely to do anyway. Getting some opinions helps us feel more confident about our own decisions in a way.
I’ve sometimes got some good advice, such as on how to share rent with unequally sized rooms. More often I’ve thought “I should ask someone that. But they’d just say ‘blah’. Wait, maybe I should blah… Cool.”
Yes! The reason I ask Dopers for advice is that they are, collectively, the brightest, wittiest, most thought provoking group of people I’ve ever known. I’ve had much trouble with my oldest daughter the past couple of years, and advice from other Dopers has helped a lot.
I’ve taken some advice given on the SDMB, both in answer to my own questions and that of others. This has come on a wide variety of topics, and from a large number of dopers. I cherry picked the advice I’ve taken, but so far all that I’ve chosen to follow has been good.
Sure. One time in particular I remember a few years back I was going on a business trip to Kansas City. No one wanted to dopefest, sadly, but I printed out about 10 pages of suggestions of places to go and things to see, which I used extensively.
Yeah, I posted a Pit thread where I was having a major meltdown because my boss had asked me to do some cold calling (the idea of which scares the crap out of me). And encouragements to buck up and just do it with out freaking helped some…
And everytime there’s a thread on some really cool gadget, I often rush out and get one. (I’m such a sheep) That’s how I got my nifty, state-of-the-art, computerized Japanese rice cooker…
I’ve posted questions on GQ and gotten some very good, useful advice, which I have used. I’m still not convinced that apatosaurs’ size were enough to protect them from allosaurs and such, but otherwise, very useful information and ideas.
I have not asked many specific questions, but I’ve had my mind changed on some small topics, like I did make a bridal registry when I got married (something I always thought was tacky, but some dopers had some good reasons for having one).
Except for the apatosaur thread which I haven’t read I agree. I recently asked for advice about a move to Manchester (UK) and recieved some very welcome advice. Other tha that I like to think that reading the debates here makes me think about the other side an argument.
I got great advice on how to let a guy down after two dates and how best to go about quitting my job without ruining all future job prospects. You have to pick and choose the advice you take, but that’s common sense, which a surprising number of people around here seem to have.
I’ve asked about credit cards and how to start making a life for yourself when you first start living on your own and gotten good advice.
And a year ago, Eonwe gave me the idea that I could move out of state if I really wanted to with an offhand comment and that eventually blossomed into me moving 2,500 miles from home.
