Questions tagged [netherlands]
Questions that have a specific focus on people in the Netherlands or Dutch culture.
88
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2
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How to make clear to foreign neighbors that I can't help them?
My downstairs neighbors who don't speak Dutch or English, have water damage. They have a moist, smelly, moldy wall for over half a year now.
They think the leakage comes from my place. But I had a ...
- 423
8
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3
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2k
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How to let people face the consequences of their own actions, and at the same time avoid a negative reaction?
My parents are both great at this: I do something stupid and they can make me realize whatever follows is simply a consequence of my own stupidity. Their approach made me take responsibility for the ...
- 34k
6
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4
answers
657
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How to provide feedback when my mother tries new recipes, in a way that doesn't upset her but still allows for honesty?
This has been a thing since I was a kid, but I experienced it again tonight. My mother has always done the cooking at home, it's also something she won't give up. She's the kind of person that would ...
- 34k
3
votes
2
answers
825
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How to decline after-work meeting requests from my manager, after setting a precedent of accepting them if pushed long enough to do so?
I am working for a client, fulltime, on another company's behalf. I have a manager on the company side that's fond of organizing 'extra-curricular' activities: Meetings organized outside of work hours ...
- 34k
2
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2
answers
660
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How to effectively counteract a rhetorical technique where a position around a complex issue is summarized in one word?
I've recently listened to an interesting Dutch podcast. The podcast talked about framing, and specifically about how people sometimes frame things by using a tactic that uses single words or images to ...
- 34k
17
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3
answers
8k
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How can I better handle 'bad-news' talks about family members I don't care about?
There are a few people in my life that I can't avoid because they're family, but that I do not care about at all. Yet, from time to time a parent or grandparent will start sharing things about these ...
- 34k
3
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2
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1k
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How can I help a hoarder friend while I worry about the health of her cats I need to feed?
One of my best friends, "Anne", has mental health problems for a long time. She's very closed off, just like me, and never responded much to my offers of help. I still tried to help her any ...
- 39
2
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1
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552
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What if I could prevent a conversation from turning into pure guesswork?
I've had some serious stuff to handle over the last month or so. And it sadly wasn't the stuff you could keep easily quiet. To make things worse, the main actor that created this mess has apparently a ...
- 34k
5
votes
3
answers
852
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How to calm a panicking grandmother over the phone?
My grandfather is having health issues. Last week, he was complaining about being tired, sleeping a lot and acting confused (can't find his way to the bathroom, that kind of stuff). He had a very ...
- 34k
8
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4
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1k
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How to gently turn down digital small-talk and prevent any new attempts at having it?
The corona virus has everybody working from home. And it seems all of management is recommending to 'stay in contact', to talk with each other digitally. Which may be fun, when it's actually planned ...
- 34k
4
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1
answer
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How to resolve a conflict with a noisy neighbor and a passive landlord?
(This is mostly a copy of a question I asked over at Law.SE. I'm reposting it here following the advice of a commenter to look for solutions with a more interpersonal appraoch.)
I have a friend who ...
- 141
34
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6
answers
13k
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How can I have a conversation with my fiancé about a subject he doesn't want to talk about?
My fiancé has a bit of a troubled history. I knew that when we got together. He has some mental issues, which I attributed to years of being bullied. Only recently I managed to figure out the main ...
- 7,982
12
votes
1
answer
2k
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How could I have better handled telling this minority woman I liked her cultural hairstyle?
Background
This happened in Netherlands. I have some mixed ancestry. I mostly look like a Dutch person, except for my curly bush of hair and my olive skin. In school I got bullied a lot because of my ...
- 7,982
8
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2
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2k
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What to say to someone going to a funeral they are looking forward to?
When a family member or friend is going to a funeral for someone they deeply hated (and have practically been celebrating their death), what do you say to sign off a conversation on the topic? Have ...
- 704
19
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3
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8k
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For how long after New Year's Day is it appropriate to wish people all the best for the new year?
Today is my first day back at the office after a two-week vacation, and so there's a lot of handshakes and well-wishing ('happy new year', 'best wishes') going on.
Which raised a fun discussion ...
- 34k