2016 has been some kind of year.  From fake news being taken seriously at all levels, to clowns in our streets and public office, to the death of Severus Snape (RIP Alan Rickman), this year has done more than just rough us up: it’s mugged us, shaken us down, stolen our shoe, and left us with nothing but a throbbing, bitter lump in the back of our head.

To many of us, 2016 felt like a bit of bad advice — misguided, fraught with damaging decisions, and more than likely will end with us sobbing into a bottle of cheap vodka.  Or maybe that’s just me.  

And like we usually did with bad advice, many of us followed 2016 down into the trenches, gritting our teeth and telling ourselves it’ll get better once this is all over.  Here, I show you what some of that horrible advice was that some of us here at the Pinnacle staff followed (anonymously of course):

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I know this probably isn’t helpful for what you’re talking about, but I don’t really take advice. I’m kinda stubborn that way. I ask for advice and then never take it. I don’t remember the last time I took advice from somebody, much less it being bad advice. -(Anonymous)

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Worst advice I ever followed. . . hmmm.

The worst for me was being told that I should not pursue my dreams and find something stable instead. -(Anonymous)

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Thinking about it for a moment, my mind keeps bringing me back to Ohio University, towards the end of my second year.  I was a pre-med major but my grades were weak.  Sitting my advisor’s office wondering what to do next, he pointed out my strengths in my poli-sci classes, so he advised me to change my major to Political Science.  True, I enjoyed those classes because they came easy to me. But my dream had always been to become a physician.  Young and gullible and wanting to take the easy way out I embraced his advice and completed that degree in two years, but with a bitter taste. . .

Sometimes I think back and say to myself, ‘if only I stuck it out’, those tough forensic chemistry courses and the tedious hours in the lab mixing stuff, I could have been a doctor today.

Having said all that, I don’t regret the wonderful experiences I’ve had as a result of my choices.  I don’t blame the advisor either.  I know I’m walking my path. -(Anonymous)

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Worst Advice:

Getting an animal can fill a void;

There was this guy I dated who was also seeing somebody else.  Well he slept with the other girl and it came up.

Friend’s advice: “get a dog, it’s easier.”

Friend and I go to DDFL and I adopt a chihuahua, who chronically masturbates. . . seriously, she’d start licking and her little legs would flail about and she’d start grunting (like every 30 minutes).

So the dog doesn’t help, or get along with roommate’s dog.  A series of unfortunate events follow, including breaking up the relationship of the people who adopted the dog from me.

It was just bad. -(Anonymous)

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I’ve made some of the worst relationship mistakes a person can make. . . and I think that came from the bad advice that was “you have to make yourself happy above all else” essentially “if it feels good do it.”  This mentality caused me to weave a path of destruction behind me from ages 21-24. And I did a considerable amount of emotional damage to myself and others in those short years! The constant chase of things that made me happy and abandonment of anything that didn’t was incredibly immature. -(Anonymous)

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I would have to say some of the worst advice I have ever followed was when my friend and I were at a party. We were freshmen in high school. The cops got called so we all lined up ready to run for the fence and make our great escape. When I was about make the leap, I looked at my buddy and he said ” Watch out, there’s a board beneath you. Jump!” I jumped. Next thing I knew I had the time to think about how long it was actually taking to fall. It was far.  Turns out it was about a fifteen foot drop into their back neighbors yard. There were dogs. My button busted off my pants. I climbed the wall, just to get caught by the cops on the other side of the fence it all started with. Two scraped legs and one walk of shame later, I couldn’t help but call my friend an idiot for ever saying “jump!” -(Anonymous)

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The absolute worst advice I have ever listened to was the advice a friend, who is no longer a friend, gave me in regards to a girl.  I was, at the time, involved in a “romance” with a girl I cared deeply about.  For whatever reason, I felt compelled to ask this “friend” for advice about what to do about this girl.  He told me to let her go because she had “too much baggage.”  I still remember the text he sent me with those words in it.  So, being the person I was, followed his advice and cut off the romance with the girl.

I still regret doing that.  Fun fact: my feelings for her got really intense and really strong pretty much right after I stopped everything and attempted to try again with her a little while later.   She had fallen in love with another person by that point.  So yeah, that still is some of the worst advice I ever followed. -(Anonymous)