Rule No. 137 - it is fatal to look hungry. It makes people want to kick you...

Wowzers, that's a little harsh. At first glance I was like, how's this guy? Shew. But then I calmed down and realized I was reading it literally. No one could really ever be that mean. Right?

The man responsible for this quote is George Orwell, one of the most influential English writers of the 20th century. Orwell wrote literary criticism, poetry, fiction and polemical (a controversial argument) journalism. This was one intelligent fella so I think we should pay attention to this rule.

After a bit of googling, turns out he is using this quote with regards to job hunting. If you have that "hungry" face, you not going to get anything, except a kick in the teeth. It's the weirdest thing, you need it the most but it's the one thing that can be your downfall. When you really desperately want something, you have to pretend that it's not a big deal. We've all heard of those desperate eyes, and some of us know them a little too well. It's uncomfortable for others and sometimes a little annoying.

So pull yourself together, feed that hunger with confidence and go get that job, or boy/girl, or whatever it is your heart desires. If you have to, fake it till you make it. Just don't ever look hungry. No one likes to be kicked.

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Rule No.33 - Never kick a fresh turd on a hot day

Okay, rules are back and what a classic one! This quote is by Harry S Truman. He was the 33 rd president of America, historians call him “a controversial president”, the band Chicago wrote a song just for him and he has a commemorative holiday in his name on the 8 th May in Missouri. This is brilliant advise, not in the literal sense, well, that too, but if you having a seriously bad day, don’t make things worse by deliberately doing something that will bite you in the bum later. I did this the other day, so I am talking out of experience here. I went into a situation and then on the way out, after realising it was a bad situation, I kicked a fresh turd cause I was so mad. (again, not literally, although, that might have been a better idea in hindsight) My advise in this circumstance is to stay indoors that day until you have calmed yourself down. I’ll leave you with another quote from Truman : A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who ...

Rule No.59 - If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bull.

"Bull", meaning nonsense, dates from the 17th century, while the term "bull*&$*" has been used as early as 1915 in American slang , and came into popular usage only during World War II . The word "bull" itself may have derived from the Old French boul meaning "fraud, deceit" (Oxford English Dictionary). The term "horse*&$*" is a near synonym. Worthy of note is the South African English equivalent "bull dust". Few corresponding terms exist in other languages, with the significant exception of German Bockmist , literally "billy-goat *&%*". Funny, Suze Original and I were talking about this the other day. She went for an interview and we were laughing cause we both do the same thing. They ask you a simple question that could be answered in a line or two but we both start elaborating so much trying to make a good impression that what started as "My favorite hobby is... right to.. and that's why I...

Rule No.6 - Don't panic

Panic is a sudden sensation of fear which is so strong as to dominate or prevent reason and logical thinking, replacing it with overwhelming feelings of anxiety and frantic agitation consistent with an animalistic f ight-or-flight reaction. It also rhymes with manic and tannic. Perfect example of when to not panic and then when to start panicking. My very first night in my new flat here in Cape Town, I was woken up by my curtain being opened from the outside. Odd, first of all, because I live on the first floor, and second of all, because there was a man, well boy, suddenly staring at me from my window. A little shocked and confused, but not panicked, I squinted through sleepy eyes and said "hello". He looked at me, a little confused as well and greeted back. Then I asked him what he was up to at my window so early in the morning. "Washing your windows", was his reply. Okay, so it's Monday morning, my first night in this complex, maybe Monday morning is washing...

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