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Is it just me, or when you become "the tech guy", family and friends become extremely entitled to your help? (lemmy.world)
submitted 5 months ago by weeeeum@lemmy.world to c/casualconversation@lemm.ee
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I wish I never told anyone I worked or studied tech. Especially older family and friends, because their requests for help are relentless.

A lot of friends are chill with it, and I don't mind doing a little bit of help, but sometimes people are who are OFFENDED when you don't want to help. In the same way a contractor friend won't remodel your home for free, I am not going to fix every single issue you have with your computer for free. I'm happy to give advice, but i'm not going to work for hours without pay to fix everything.

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[-] ByteOnBikes@slrpnk.net 3 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

Been a engineer for more than 15 years.

My secret to avoiding this? Always act like you're the stupidest in the room. Not full blown, but like pretty high level dumb.

  • Someone once asked me how to fix their windows. No idea - I only use Linux.

  • My favorite Linux flavor? Uh I dunno... The one that Tim Apple makes!

  • So I know how to use terminals? Not really, I just use the GUI, which stands for General User Interactions.

  • How do I get this far and write code? Well I type things into google.com and then copy and paste code and it just works.

  • But don't I need a degree? Nah. I was mostly doing drugs and alcohol and cheated my way up.

  • Aren't I speaking at tech conferences? Nah. I just type things into google.com slash Gemini and read what the AI, which stands for Advanced Intelligence, says.

And I Never have to fix a god damn thing.

[-] Geth@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 5 months ago

No way do people need tech support from you if they know about Linux distros or what a GUI is.

[-] Subverb@lemmy.world 5 points 5 months ago

Never go full blown.

this post was submitted on 06 Jan 2025
247 points (96.6% liked)

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