Rules of Thumb

I came across an interesting book lately. Didn’t get the chance to read it all, but managed to skim through most of it. What caught my attention most was its name; “Rules of Thumb – A Life Manual”, written by Tom Parker.

The idea behind the book – in a nutshell – is to shed light on some of the key observations made by different writers and experts.

Here are some of the rules quoted in the book which I liked most, and thought I’d share with you:

1. “The Go-To Guy: If you really need something done, ask a busy person”
2. “Pausing to Think: When asked an important question, always pause for at least a silent count of three before answering. You will appear to be more thoughtful and intelligent”
3. “Caught Napping: An hour’s nap in the middle of the day equals three hours of sleep at night”
4. “Eating Like a Thin Person: Before you eat, ask yourself how hungry you are on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being an empty stomach and 10 the stuffed bloated, after-Thanksgiving-dinner feeling. Eat only when you rate your hunger a 1 or 2. Then stop when you reach 5”
5. “Speaking with Clarity: When writing a speech, never include a word you have to look up”
6. “Popping M&M’s: Fifty-four M&M’s have the same caffeine content as two cups of coffee”
7. “Thwarting Optimism: If you ask a negative question, you will get a negative answer”
8. “The Illusion of Autonomy: When giving a child a choice between two options, make sure both options are acceptable to you”
9. “Think Big on a Small Scale: A clear idea should fit on the back of a business card”

My personal favorites are numbers 7 and 9. You tell me yours :)