Over the years, your friends have given you some spectacular advice. They got it just for you, but be honest: you’re never gonna use it, so wouldn’t it be better to give to someone else? Here are a few ways to regift that pesky old advice, because you can’t use it but your sad friend Katie DEFINITELY should:
Reword It
The advice you were given was great, how do you regift it without making it seem like it’s recycled? Instead of saying, “You should stop dating men that are bad for you,” which you completely ignored in your own life, try, “Why don’t you stop dating men who are total garbage?” This way, it’ll seem like your own fresh take and original words. Congrats, you’re now a helpful friend who continues to avoid her own deep-seated issues!
Find Similarities in Your Situations
The key to getting rid of that old advice you didn’t feel like taking is to find someone who really needs it. Just find a way to apply the advice you were given to their problem: Like when your friend is complaining that her boss is being too critical of her work, you can say, “Ugh, you should just stop texting him!” Voilà, advice regifted! Nobody will ever know!!
Give It Some Time
If you get a piece of sage wisdom, don’t regift do it too quickly or it will be super obvious! If you regift right away, it may be painfully clear that you should be using this advice yourself. Wait at least a few months after your pal told you, “Getting an MFA is a waste of time” before you present the idea to your other friend.
Don’t Give It Back To The Same Person
The biggest no-no when regifting is giving the advice back to the person who gave it to you in the first place. So think hard about whether Katie was the first person to suggest that you, “Try to stay single for a while and clear your head” before you tell her the exact same thing. Not only is regifting advice embarrassing, once you do it, you open up the door for her to do it right back to you. And you’re trying to get rid of this terrible advice forever!
Next time you have some unused advice lying around, think of offering it to someone else in need so that it doesn’t go to waste when you just refuse to take it yourself.
