Someone with whom I’ve been communicating regularly (and will more in the future) sent me an email the other day. This person’s boss was copied on the message. Because of the CC’d boss, I suspect, there was a healthy amount of greasy-talk in said email.

I replied to the message diplomatically enough, but I felt a void inside about the situation. I’d passed on an opportunity to, metaphorically, pull this person’s pants down in front of their boss, with nothing precluding me from doing so.

Maybe I’m growing as a person.

***

I heard 50 Cent tell a story about when he was in a drug rehabilitation program as a youth (50 wasn’t a user; he’d convinced a judge to send him there instead of to prison for an early drug-trafficking offense). Every week there would be meetings amongst all the addicts, each attendee required to tell their story. The other attendees could respond to what they heard.

There was one rule, though: When someone offered their opinion of you to you, you weren’t allowed to reply in the moment. If the meeting was on, say, Tuesday, you had to hold your response until Friday. 50 credited the experience for his ability to remain calm when a rival rapper, for instance, would diss him in a song or interview, biding his time until the right opportunity presented itself.