Gear

What to buy, what to skip, and what the cheaper one actually costs you.

The BRO Gear GuideBuy once, fix it, pass it down: a cost-per-use calculator, a warranty decoder and a repairability checklist.Judge it before you buy

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How to complain so the thing actually gets fixed

The calm, specific, written way to get a refund, a repair or an apology — and the escalation ladder that works when the first person says no.

GuideLifeCal BrennanSep 22, 20265 min

Have people round more often by doing considerably less

The reason you don't host isn't the house or the cooking. It's the production you've decided hosting requires.

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Build me a 30-day training plan around two sessions a week

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GuideBe a ManMarcus ValeSep 22, 20266 min

How to hold your ground when you're losing an argument

Composure is a skill, not a personality trait. Here's what to do with your voice, your body and your mouth when the conversation is going against you.

Delicious.com — Nine thousand recipes and a plan for tonight

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Skills6 min read

Negotiating a car price without any of the theater

Most of the work happens by email, days before you ever sit down in the chair with a salesperson.

Poll

How often do you see your closest friends?

GuideLifeCal BrennanSep 22, 20265 min

Walking into a club at forty and actually going back

The awkwardness is real, it's short, and there's a way to shorten it further. Mostly it comes down to what you say in the first minute.

GuideYoung MenSam OrtizSep 22, 20265 min

Short certifications that actually raise your pay

A credential only moves your income when it's a legal gate between you and the work. Everything else is a receipt for a course.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

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GuideSkillsMarcus ValeSep 22, 20266 min

How to do CPR now, and what changed since your last class

Most of what you were taught a decade ago has been simplified, and the parts people get wrong are the parts that matter most.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

GuideLifeCal BrennanSep 22, 20265 min

How to find a group in your town that's worth showing up for

A simple test for which local groups are worth your evenings, where the good ones hide, and how to stop quitting after two visits.

GuideYoung MenSam OrtizSep 22, 20266 min

The trades that pay best and what the first two years cost you

Which trades actually pay, how to get in, and an honest account of the two years most people quit in.

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Build me a revision plan that I will actually stick to

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GuideSkillsWes DunbarSep 22, 20266 min

The six multimeter checks that solve most problems

A multimeter does forty things. You'll use six of them, and they cover almost every dead battery, dead outlet and dead appliance you'll meet.

CancerDefying.com — The research, protocols and reading in one place

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GuideLifeCal BrennanSep 22, 20265 min

Become the neighbor your street calls at eleven at night

Nobody calls a stranger when the basement floods. Being the one they phone is a set of habits you can start this weekend.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

GuideYoung MenSam OrtizSep 22, 20266 min

Some jobs teach you, the rest just pay you

How to tell within two weeks whether a job is building you or just renting your hours, and what to do either way.

GuideSkillsSam OrtizSep 22, 20266 min

Write an email that gets answered before lunch

Most emails don't get ignored because they're badly written. They get ignored because replying is too much work.

Coconut.com — Tell us when. We find where the sun is.

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GuideFamilyCal BrennanSep 22, 20266 min

What to do the first time your child really lies to you

Not the fib about the cookie. The planned, rehearsed, look-you-in-the-eye lie — and the ten minutes after it that matter most.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next two weeks.

Young Men6 min

The apprenticeships worth applying for and how they get filled

Skills6 min

How to wire a plug properly, and when to leave it alone

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What should I wear to this?

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GuideFamilyCal BrennanSep 22, 20265 min

Telling your kids someone they love has died

Plain words, the right timing, and what to do in the weeks after — from the conversation no parent wants to have.

GermProof.com — An invisible germ barrier on your skin for hours

PartnerGermProof.com

Young Men6 min read

The two questions that decide if a degree pays off

Some majors clear their own cost in a few years. Some never do. The difference isn't prestige, it's price and whether the diploma is a gate.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

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