Correcting People

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Something I have always done. If people are explaining a situation that happened and the details they give are wrong I end up interrupting and correcting there mistakes, again if someone is singing and they get the line wrong if I know the song I will stop and quote the correct line. I get aggravated with wrong information and I know it drives people mad but I can’t help it.

I used to correct people like that because I wanted to know what was right. But I discovered that many people are afraid of being wrong and don't want the truth at all. So until I know who is which, I nod and smile. Personally, I am grateful for a correction (politely). But many people are humiliated by being wrong. "Wrong" shouldn't have that stigma.

One time, John Cleese was performing, and another actor had accidentally cut himself. John was so surprised that he missed his lines and had to ad-lib. He apologized backstage to Eddie Izzard, who then changed his life. Eddie pointed out that half the audience could have prompted him for the right line; what made it extra fun for them was seeing a unique performance. After that, the whole cast had a great time, playing pranks to try to throw each other off.
I used to really wonder why people would go to concerts to hear the music from their records under challenging circumstances, but the lyrics are felt more strongly with some improvisation, as if the performer is discovering the feelings afresh.
In practical matters, there are many people suffering from Dunning-Kruger. They can't really tell if a column of figures adds up correctly, but they can tell if you are being nice to them, and that's all they really care about.
Walter Chrysler used to insist that there was only one way to do a job, which wasted a huge range of talents he didn't employ himself. One inspector might need several minutes with a precision gauge to check a part, while a trained musician could just tap it and listen. My friend Steve used to fix mainframe computers. He was a whiz at finding the faulty area, just by listening to the static they produced on a cheap radio.

One of the secrets to customer service. Some people just want someone who will treat them nicely, and acknowledge the problem. That's it. Nothing else required. Especially when it is obvious to all that it can't be fixed.

Live and let live. People make mistakes. Nobody likes a smart-ass, even though you have no ill intent.

Additions and corrections in red. Deletions in gray. Use double spaces after each full-stop.

You're welcome.

I find myself correcting people a lot. I do it automatically and than I say to my friends, "Damn! I did it again!" I'm correcting people half as much as I used to but I can be a little hard on myself if I slip.

Oh, I was terrible about that. I've learned to pick my battles and it has made life much easier.

If someone makes a blatant misstatement or presents bad information I will correct it, if I feel that it is appropriate to do so. An example would be if someone gave bad advice on an animal forum that could potentially place someone's pet in danger, or if someone presented me with a lie in the course of a discussion. Don't pee on my leg and then tell me it's raining.

I have learned to stop correcting people's grammar, punctuation and spelling. Most people find it rude and will disregard the help even if it's well-intended. I will disregard factual inaccuracies if it really doesn't matter and raising the point would cause unnecessary offense. Before I open my mouth I have to ask, "Is this really a hill that I'm willing to die on?" If not, I let it go.

I do make exceptions when I am called on to proofread, asked my opinion or when I am with someone who truly won't be offended if I correct them. For example, my husband has a brilliant mathematical mind but his spelling and writing skills leave a bit to be desired. He doesn't mind at all when I politely correct him. He in turn corrects my math, at which I suck. No hard feelings.

I can't help myself either. I feel like, if I let it go, it's dishonesty. It's like I heard them say it, but am pretending they were right in what they said. I hate misquoted lyrics too, unless they're for comedy effect, I get annoyed and have to tell them the real lyrics. It's not just the words, sometimes they miss the whole meaning of the song, I can't help but feel it's a little disrespectful to the writer.

Double-spacing after a full stop is outdated and no longer used in any style guide. It was originally used because typewriter ink sometimes smeared and one might not be able to see where one sentence ended and another began, so they put an extra space in there for clarity. There’s no reason for them anymore.

Also, when you attempted to correct MrMacPhisto, you added a few unnecessary “thats” into the post. They often serve as unneeded words, and you should make a habit of leaving them out.

You also added a semicolon before “but.” A conjunction defeats the purpose of a semicolon.

Learn from a professional.

The double space after a full stop also aids the eye movements. Paragraph indents did the same. Typography has declined considerably with untrained people using desktop publishing.

I still use them since first learning to use a typewriter (remember those?) back in the 1960s. It helps to visually separate the sentences, thus making a paragraph easier to read (for me, at least).Too late. I'm already in the habit of leaving them in -- another 50-year old habit.How do you feel about the Oxford Comma?I did. She was a publisher / editor / typesetter at my hometown's newspaper, and insisted that everyone write their articles in the same style. I was a copyboy / stringer / delivery boy there for ten years, until she died and her heirs sold the paper to a news syndicate.Hear! Hear!

I am strongly in support of the Oxford Comma. I worked on newspapers for seven years and had to leave them out, and it tore me up inside.

I want to correct others' grammar, English, math, recollections of mutual events. I used to be a real pita. Mostly don't do it anymore, but still yell at the radio when an NPR announcer says something like: "there will be less dollars for..." ARRGGG!

It is not so much that I need to be right, but the inner feeling I have that if this is not corrected, the ENTIRE WORLD IS NOT RIGHT!

So what emoji do you use when you laugh at yourself? Cause I need a lot of those.

My kindergarten teacher would scream at me when I corrected people, even when they were wrong.

I’m damned if I can stop myself. It gets me in a whole heap of trouble. Usually it’s people using the wrong word. I try to ignore it, but then I doubt my comprehension because the wrong word throws the context way out, and I’m sat with a perplexed look on my face. I’m told I’m pedantic for wanting to understand what was actually meant and offering up the correct word. Then I’m told: “Nobody even talks like that...”

I can’t even put into words the active discomfort I experience as a result of an inaccuracy. I know it’s irrational, but I can’t help it.

I think that largely for me, it stems from the fact that I exist in a state of immense discomfort on a daily basis from constantly trying to keep the burgs in check. I do this for the comfort of everybody around me.
Don’t do anything burgy, don’t say anything burgy, don’t dont don’t don’t. My checklist for the day is DON’T. Whereas the normaloids don’t actively have to moderate anything they do or say...

Oh, does anybody else have an issue with people who insist on saying “end” at the end of every sentence? It positively brings me the rage. I can see no earthly reason for it.