This is good advice in the same vein as the multiple-times-submitted "You can't tell people anything (2004)"[0][1][2][3]. The crux of the issue is that people p

This is good advice in the same vein as the multiple-times-submitted "You can't tell people anything (2004)"[0][1][2][3]. The crux of the issue is that people prefer their own understanding of the world over someone else's. As with the examples given in this article, each person took the opportunity to further develop in their mind their own idea about the situation whilst disregarding the author's reality. This is human nature. You see it in "You can't tell people anything" where the software team really just thought about what the Chip tried to explain to them in their own way, heavily steered by their own very different understanding of things. Outside of these examples, my experience is that an exceptionally small amount of people are really willing to listen. When it seems that many people are listening, I'd argue that it's their own preconceptions that pave the way for the message. If their preconceptions aren't in line with the message, then you get into the situation the author describes. In those cases, just saying No really is more efficient. [0] http://habitatchronicles.com/2004/04/you-cant-tell-people-anything/ http://habitatchronicles.com/2004/04/you-cant-tell-people-an... [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23617188 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23617188 [2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17384703 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17384703 [3] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28775517 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28775517