Etiquette embeds in your psyche until it resembles logic. To a guesser, it may seem necessarily and universally true that, say, asking to borrow a friend’s new car is putting them in an awkward position. But these ideas are defined by culture, by cohort. Per The Atlantic piece, “Brits and Americans get discombobulated doing business in Japan,

... See more

“Any chance you can feed the cat while I’m out? No worries if not!” By pretending the stakes are lower than they are, we inoculate ourselves against the embarrassment of having needs, or appearing to care if we’re rejected. It’s a pressure valve, but a palliative one; after all, the stakes haven’t actually changed. I think this is a pretty good

... See more