Wisdom

What's the simplest piece of wisdom you'd hand to anyone, anywhere, in any situation?

Why this question matters

Most of what a person has learned in seven or eight decades doesn't survive them. What does survive is usually a single sentence, repeated to enough people that it gets carried forward. This question asks your parent to choose that sentence on purpose, while they still can.

If they pause, try this

Ask where it came from — was it learned from someone, or earned the hard way?

What people often remember when asked this

01
The answers tend to be deceptively simple. "Be on time." "Tell the truth." "Don't go to bed angry." Ask for the story that taught them that one sentence — the version with the consequence behind it.
02
Some parents have an answer they've been saying for years and never been asked to explain. Ask where it came from. Was it their mother? Their first boss? Something they figured out for themselves?
03
If they can't settle on one, ask them to pick three and then choose. The choosing is the whole exercise.

A small tip for the conversation

Write it down word for word. Save the punctuation. This is the line that ends up on a wall, or a card at a wedding, or a eulogy.

What's the simplest piece of wisdom you'd hand to anyone, anywhere, in any situation?

Why this question matters

What people often remember when asked this

A small tip for the conversation

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