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A Love Letter to People Who Believe in People

(www.swiss-miss.com)
377 points NaOH | 2 comments | 24 Apr 25 22:35 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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HanClinto ◴[25 Apr 25 14:08 UTC] No.43793725[source]▶
This is so needed. This was a very encouraging article.

"Being a fan is all about bringing the enthusiasm. It’s being a champion of possibility. It’s believing in someone. And it’s contagious. When you’re around someone who is super excited about something, it washes over you. It feels good. You can’t help but want to bring the enthusiasm, too."

Stands in contrast to the Hemingway quote: "Critics are men who watch a battle from a high place then come down and shoot the survivors."

It feels socially safe, easy, and destructive to be a critic.

I'd rather be a fan.

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rubicon33 ◴[25 Apr 25 14:56 UTC] No.43794235[source]▶
I agree but, doesn’t the world need critics?

I think of a company where young inspired engineers want to build new things all the time.

Their heart is in the right place but they need someone(s) to be respectfully critical since their efforts and time spent have very real impacts on the company.

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phkahler ◴[25 Apr 25 15:08 UTC] No.43794354[source]▶
Critics maybe. Antagonists no.
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1. o11c ◴[25 Apr 25 18:38 UTC] No.43797117[source]▶
I can't agree with this at all. There's something deeply wrong with the world if any form of opposition is considered problematic.

Some variant of "the customer is always right" applies in the marketplace of ideas as well. People are allowed to have different preferences.

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2. ChrisMarshallNY ◴[26 Apr 25 10:03 UTC] No.43802285[source]▶
I’ve learned that there isn’t a “magic bullet” policy that we can enact, that always ensures that we do things correctly. Human nature is messy and varied. A word of praise can be weaponized.

I often encounter people that use praise as a domination tool. They praise you in a manner that suggests that, if they did not recognize and note something, you would not have it. They use praise to “declare ownership” of your good traits.

I encounter this, because I have highly valuable skills, that can make others a great deal of money, and have an aspect that predatory people think is “weakness.” They believe I have low self-esteem, because I am not always tubthumping.

Also, we have to be careful of saying things like “Don’t complain, if you don’t have a solution.”[0]

[0] https://littlegreenviper.com/problems-and-solutions/