#INSTEAD BEING PRAISED FOR HIS HARD WORK AND CREATIVITY AND KINDNESS AND WILLINGNESS TO HELP | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hoodoo12 · 4 years

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Send In The --

Disclaimers on this story: 1) This is a one-shot. I’m not doing anything more like this. This just needed out of my brain; now that it’s purged, I’m sure I’ll be fine and never speak of it again. (this is kind of a pep-talk for myself, tbh. Get the picture, brain?!)

2) More importantly, I am very sorry.

NSFW. Explicit language and s-e-x and everyone’s kind of a jerk. Instead of “enjoy,” I’ll repeat: for what you’re about to read, I am very sorry.

“You’re an asshole.” He deigned to look down at you, dragging on his cigarette.

"What's that? Did I hear a complaint? How about a little less talking and a little more gagging, sweetcheeks." He snapped the fingers on the hand not holding the smoke, as if that was a prompt to get back to it, like you were wasting his precious time instead of getting a blowjob while you were doing the work half cramped in the footwell of his desk, kneeling between his thighs as you sucked him off. You had half a mind to shove him backwards on his chair--he’d have no control over stopping it, it being on wheels and all--and getting the fuck out of his office, but he cocked his head like he was reading your mind and clucked his tongue. “You want any reciprocation, sugar, you’re gonna have to earn it.”

He thought he had the upper hand here, but you knew he didn’t. He knew he didn’t; you held all the cards because even though he talked a big game, if he wanted any action that wasn’t provided by you he had to pay through the nose for it. Literally through the nose, since the only hookers he could entice wanted paid in coke. Plus you knew his drug dealer raked him over the coals because he was shit with finances. You knew all that because you helped with his books. Being creative with the numbers gave you a little job security. So did a willingness to suck and fuck him.

His little affair with you was on the down low, which meant everybody and their brother knew about it. You didn’t care. He plied you with expensive gifts and kept you well, even if he was despicable, greedy, and borderline gross.

You continued to give him a blank-eyed stare, and like clockwork, despite his talk, he crumbled. “Come on, baby, please!” he whined. “You can’t just leave me hanging with a spit-soaked boner! I gotta show ta do in twenty minutes and a wet spot on my crotch’ll show up on camera! I’ll make it worth your while, you know that! You know you can’t get enough of my dick--” Sighing because unfortunately it was true, you dropped your mouth back onto him. This time you were merciless, applying the heaviest suction you could muster to his cock, taking him all the way in till your nose was crushed into his pubic hair. You’d have stayed just like that as long as it took if he’d ever given a second’s passing thought to trimming that dull green colored bush, but as it were the hair tickled your nose too much and you had to drag yourself off him, gasping for a breath. You wiped your nose. Before he could deride you again, you swallowed him once more. You sucked and bobbed and swirled your tongue one direction then the opposite way on the next stroke. Stealing breaths when you could, you kept up a hard pace. From the guttural noises and the jerking of his legs in time with your mouth, it was obvious he was enjoying it. When his free hand grabbed your head and his fingers knotted themselves into your hair, you knew he was close, even though you’d expressly told him you didn’t want it to end this way. And yep, when he thrust upward as best he could in a seated position into you and held you in place with that hand that pulled your hair too tightly, you had only seconds to take a deep enough breath to tide you over as he came in your mouth. Doing your best to relax but not swallow, you let him ride out his release for several agonizing moments. He never cared that you were out of air or that your eyes were tearing. You silently thanked whatever deity that may be passing by that you’d worn waterproof mascara today.

Finally he groaned his last and flopped back into the chair, letting go of the side of your head as he did. Released, you pushed him back; just as you’d predicted, the chair moved smoothly on its wheels and he didn’t try to stop himself. You climbed to your feet and yanked open the top drawer of his desk, grabbing a handful of tissues from it and spitting the come he hadn’t had the decency to not give you into them. “What did I tell you?!” you barked at him. “You weren’t supposed to get off in my mouth, you fucker!” Lazily he grinned and took another drag off the cigarette he’d never even set down. It needed flicked of its ash, but he didn’t. “Whatever, baby. You know you loved it,” he replied dismissively. He wasn’t as unaffected by the blowjob you’d just given him, however; he couldn’t hide the flush that matched his nose. It was made more obvious by the typically pale skin on his face. With an inarticulate noise of frustration, you dug through the open drawer again and found your prize: a pill vial. Opening it and extracting a single tablet, you descended on him. Straddling his lap, you forced the small blue pill into his mouth. He struggled in protest a tiny bit, not too hard, complaining he couldn’t swallow pills dry, to which you retorted you’d be more than happy to give him back the mouthful of jizz he’d so kindly graced you with--

He gulped and the pill was gone. “Good boy,” you praised. “Now you’ve got half an hour to an hour before that Viagra kicks in. Good thing your show only lasts forty minutes with commercial breaks.” The clown under you grumbled and whined, his standard response to you being forceful about holding him accountable to what he’d promised you. You made it up to him by lifting your skirt to show you’d not worn any panties today, just for him. He changed his tune. “Gonna rail you so hard baby,” he bragged. “You love it and you know it. Come on, gimme a kiss before I have to get out there on stage--” Someone pounded on the door and shouted through it, “One minute till curtain!” “--find my pants,” he said with no transition as he shoved you unceremoniously off his lap.

With a sigh, you did. He finally crushed out his cigarette before shimmying back into his trousers without even wiping his spit-slick crotch. He grinned widely at you, like he was king of the world, as he left you standing beside his desk. “Sometimes I hate you so much,” you said to his back. “Not nearly as much as I hate me, baby,” Krusty replied over his shoulder, and he was gone. fin and my god have mercy upon my soul

#writing #fanfiction #no one regrets this more than I do

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hyojinrk-archived · 5 years

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#5020 — kim hyojin & #5017 — kang daniel ( @danielxrk )

MGA 5 EPISODE 4: nida team f2′s kpop vs. pop mashup ( arrangement )

mentions: @rksakura, @rkseunghun, @rkmason, @rkkenta, @danielxrk and many more!

with everything completely unpredictable, mixed in with too many confounding variables for him to do anything but desperately hope to show the best version of him every time, hyojin finds himself unable to wish for more than anything to make it past each round. he’s not the type to be disappointed for not being the best -- the fact that he had been praised in the first episode by the ceos was already amazing enough for him, and even sakura’s compliment still makes him blush whenever he thinks back to how she had called his voice pretty. besides, all that matters to him is that he’s improving and slowly learning to polish his skills, to become more refined than the rough rock he currently was. he’s quite happy enough being able to sing onstage and to show off his charms, taking whatever he could to be a learning experience for the future.

it’s not surprising to him at all that half of the people comprising the best duos of the week were named as the most talented in their skill category the previous week; if anything, he’s far more shocked that on the other side of things, some of the best got eliminated. yuqi, one of the best rappers, and then some talented singers, like jinyoung -- actually, all of them were quite good, so it’s rather jarring. it’s nowhere near as emotionally stressing as wonpil’s or seungmin’s eliminations, but still disappointing nevertheless, because he’s sure that everyone’s worked incredibly hard just to be here at this point.

perhaps he’s naive for thinking it, but he wishes that this was really just some kind of talent show, a place where people can show off their skills and learn from others without having to face the harsh reality of elimination and rankings. but that’s not why the mgas is so popular -- something like a tv showcase for talent can only happen once the acclaim is earned, the respect fought for with tooth and claw.

as much as many of the others seemed more aggressive and hyojin far more passive, it was by no means an indicator of passion or desire to do well. it seemed counterintuitive, but sometimes, when he looks up at the little cracks in the ceiling of his bedroom, reaching a finger up to trace them like constellations, hyojin feels his heart burn, his head rushing with a waterfall of thoughts, wishes, feelings that he can only describe as hunger. hunger and determination for the spotlight. sometimes, the ones that show their claws last can be the most dangerous -- he’s just as desperate, in a way, if not more so, but he shows it in a different way.

as the filming ends, he pats seunghun’s shoulder affectionately, smiling fondly at the boy and giving him a high five for a job well done. looks like he now owes someone spicy pork -- maybe they’ll go out later that week to celebrate before things spiral into madness once thursday comes again, although he’s sure they’ll both be busy in their duos. his mouth quirks up slightly as he comments on seunghun’s pairing with a “minho, huh? lucky duck. i’ll be looking forward to it. good luck, hunnie~”

as they part, hyojin finds himself wandering over to his own partner, his eyes having wandered over to the ashy-haired male the moment their names were called out, widening in surprise. who knew that he’d end up getting paired with daniel? the man was a lot of things in hyojin’s eyes -- a member of the famed empty enigma and sungwoon’s bandmate, competition, an unlikely collaboration partner -- but a duo partner was not an expected title. either fate works in strange ways, or mnet really does have eyes everywhere. after all, hyojin wouldn’t be surprised if there are videos circulating on the web of him and daniel performing fear together, especially coinciding with the mgas filming period. he can already sense some conspiracy theories popping up the moment things get revealed.

nevertheless, he can feel the excitement welling up, prudent but strong, at the prospect of working together with him again, this time for real. he’s been paying pretty close attention to daniel’s performances lately, impressed with his charisma and creativity, as well as his willingness to take risks and show off different talents. at the same time, though, hyojin really hopes that he can sing together with the male again.

finally making his way through the crowd of people leaving the studio to the taller, broad-shouldered male, hyojin taps his shoulder. “daniel-ssi, we meet again.” holding out a hand to the male, similar to the first time when they met, hyojin flashes him a soft and welcoming smile. “let’s do our best!”

❀ PREPARATIONS;

it’s a bit awkward at first -- even though there’s an air of mutual respect hovering around the both of them, they don’t quite know each other well enough to joke around like he does with hunnie. nevertheless, hyojin tries his best, listening attentively to what suggestions the other threw out and trying to add his own input. admittedly, they both had a relatively similar track record for songs so far -- they’ve both done girl group remakes at some point, remixes of pop songs, made heavy use of live instruments when performing. it’s this comfort and familiarity with instrumental that brings them closer, though, and after a few sessions of messing around with chords and tossing around songs, along with careful questions about the others’ lives, daniel suggests that they do a mashup.

at first, it strikes hyojin with surprise -- the fact that he’s never thought to do something like that surprises him, but it quickly turns into approval; the only way they could change up things in a fun and creative way was to do something like that. except, it’s a little different this time. daniel’s practically fluent in english, and hyojin is markedly not, but they both want to do pop songs. the thing is, in which language?

it’s quickly resolved before anything comes up, though -- they agree that they could do a mix of both american and korean songs, and with daniel’s more expansive knowledge of the former and hyojin’s familiarity with the latter, they decide to split up and choose their own songs, meeting in the middle to mix them together and make the necessary cuts.

for hyojin, he finds himself sifting through a multitude of pop songs, deciding on the more recent ones, along with selections from representative groups like bts, twice, and blackpink, along with one of his personal favorite songs, n.flying’s rooftop. likewise, daniel chooses his songs, and things go relatively smoothly from there. admittedly, hyojin finds himself impressed with his partner’s ability to mesh the songs well together for the most part, and although he helps in the process, he can’t help but think that this would have been a far more monumental task had daniel not been with him. even though they’re vastly different, they seem to have a hidden chemistry that hyojin can neither put his finger on or explain properly, one becomes clear when they perform together on stage.

they decide to go for a mix of guitar and keyboard, a bit similar to a band but less focused on the instrumental and more so on the singing and the novelty of the song mashup, and as they practice, hyojin figures out places to ad lib and to harmonize. they work surprisingly well together, like cogs in a bigger machine, and it becomes easier and easier to talk with daniel about other things about music and away from mgas, bonding over music and talking about empty enigma, sharing recommendations and letting their music tastes blend together into the perfect collaboration performance.

❀

"what about f2?” hyojin offers, tilting his head. after spending a decent amount of time quietly thinking to himself, letting daniel throw out some names first and letting the both of them play around with the idea before ultimately dropping it in hopes of finding something better, an idea formulates in hyojin’s head. after hearing that daniel hadn’t had a team name with heejin, it for some reason makes him even more determined to come up with a good name, one that matches the greatness of the one he had with seunghun.

“you know how there’s f4 from boys over flowers? we could be that, but since there’s two of us, we’ll be f2.” he says it a bit jokingly, laughing at the ridiculousness of his own suggestion, even as he adds, “we’ll make the audience fall in love with us with our overflowing charm.”

it ends up becoming their name, though, once daniel points out that the name is also a chord ( despite not knowing the drama hyojin was talking about ), and they decide to take it on due to it fitting their musical and charismatic image. after settling on the intro, of course with the included cringiness that was necessary for every good team introduction, they find that they’ve finally squared everything away.

now, all there was left to do was practice.

❀ IN THE STUDIO;

he’s notably a lot more chipper this time around, entering the studio with a more lax stance and with daniel at his side, the both of them in coordinated dress. this time, instead of a loose dress shirt, he’s dressed a little more casually, now in a shining red jacket with gold trimmings draped over a white t-shirt with a blue logo splattered over it, an outfit that fits the fresh vibes of summer and complements his hair well. slipping a hand in the pocket of his white skinny jeans, he finds a place to sit with daniel, near enough to seunghun so he can still talk to the male. laughing silently to himself when daniel starts bowing at minho, who happened to be his friend’s partner, hyojin waves it off when the male sits back down and sees his laughing, covering his face sheepishly. even though they were on different teams now, it didn’t mean that they couldn’t still converse as usual. at the very least, he could wish his friend the best of luck.

as it turns out, he doesn’t need it, because when seunghun goes up to the stage, he demolishes it along with minho. they complement each other incredibly well ( although hyojin would argue that seunghun and him had the best chemistry out of all the others -- but that might just be a prick of jealousy speaking ), and with their skills to back them up, hyojin is both satisfied and impressed with his friend, cheering for him excitedly and clapping him on the back when he gets back to his seat, bowing politely to minho. even though he didn’t listen to k-pop often, he still had a large amount of respect for the former convex member.

before that, though, sakura and kenta take the stage, a rapper-dancer duo. despite their different skillsets, they pull things off smoothly, and hyojin can’t help but heave a sigh of relief at how they not only finished safely without any mistakes, but also did quite well. he never doubted sakura, with her exuberant energy that always seemed to lift his spirits whenever he saw her lovely smile, but sometimes it’s hard to guess what could happen. mistakes are never meant to be made intentionally, after all. inwardly, even as he calls to her across the room, telling her “よくやったね ( yoku yattane -- you did well ),” shooting her an affectionate wink, he hopes that she can continue to perform at the best of her ability, and that she’s taking care of herself well.

❀ ON THE STAGE;

they’re called up to the stage as soon as seunghun and minho finish theirs, and even though he offers daniel a soft smile and squeezes the bigger male’s arm comfortingly in reponse to his comment as they go up to the stage, he can feel the weight of matching up to their performance pushing down on him. he finds himself echoing to himself in his head that he can do it, that their performance was also sure to impress in the same way seunghun’s had, because they had poured all of their effort into this, like it was their last chance on the stage. even with all of the netizens’ negative comments on daniel, hyojin knows his partner and now friend was better than they thought he was, that he was equally deserving and talented as everyone else.

if anything, that’s why he suggested the team name -- he wants to make sure that, even if it’s through their team name and their introduction, they assert this fact. call him nosy, or with a case of a severely bleeding heart, but he genuinely feels this way. he wants to prove to everyone that they can defend their positions, and put on a good show while doing so.

“hello, we are,” introducing them in his calm, soothing speaking voice, hyojin allows a pause for him and daniel to play the f2 chord on their respective instruments, before they say, “f2!”

letting daniel introduce himself, hyojin continues on the same thread as the male, adding, “and i’m kim hyojin, contestant #5020! like the members of f4, we’ll make sure to charm you~”

( maybe he just has a thing for cheesy intros, but he’s already stopped being embarrassed of himself at this point. he’s said worse, and also done worse -- mnet had even broadcasted his little joke confession to seunghun, whom had also done the same unknowingly -- so at this point, he’s just having fun with it, and taking advantage of his naturally cute complexion. he’s pretty sure his mom will laugh the moment she sees him doing this on broadcast again. )

they make sure their set-up works, with them facing each other slightly ( still able to see the judges, though ) to simulate the idea of a pseudo-competition that crosses over at the end and the individual microphones placed at the right setting. with that, he lets daniel do another quick strum to tune, and they begin their performance, daniel playing the introduction.

( bold = hyojin’s parts/both, normal = daniel’s parts )

oh oh oh oh love is nothing stronger than a boy with luv

singing softly, hyojin has yet to play much of the keyboard in the song except for a few light chords, and he lets his voice fluctuate nicely as he conveys the lyrics, smiling sweetly at the judges. turning his gaze back to the keyboard to focus on playing as things pick up, he moves his body slightly to the beat as daniel picks up the next song, singing the english perfectly.

look at me, look at you 누가 더 아플까? look at me, look at you, who’ll be in more pain? you smart 누가? you are you smart? who is? you are

transitioning into the blackpink song, he continues by following the original melody, this time drawing out his notes to accentuate them more and to fit the tone of the song. at the same time, it meshes well with the performance, and although the top line is different every time, it sounds nice -- like it’s an actual song. when he hears some of the members of the audience make a sound of recognition due to the recency and popularity of the song, he grins, winking playfully in their direction, the hype only building up as daniel segues into the next song, making good use of the same ‘oh oh oh oh’ hook from boy with luv to shift into shape of you.

on ‘slow,’ they both visibly slow down their playing, almost a bit teasingly, before they pick it back up again without a hitch, this time into dalla dalla.

예쁘기만 하고 매력은 없는 just pretty but not attractive at all 애들과 난 달라 달라 달라 i’m different from the kids 니 기준에 날 맞추려 하지 마 don’t measure me by your standards alone 난 지금 내가 좋아 나는 나야 i love being myself, i’m nobody else

lifting up a free hand to gesture at “달라 달라 달라,” hyojin continues to play the correct notes with his other hand, displaying his skill with the instrument and his surprisingly relaxed nature on the stage, hearing daniel harmonize with him to create a sweet-sounding chord, before waggling his finger at the next line, as if telling the judges not to measure him by just their standards, because he, like daniel, is more out of the box.

he harmonizes again with daniel at the last line before putting his other hand back down on the piano, and they pick up for the more vocal-heavy part of the song. daniel sings versace on the floor, the notes a little higher and showing off more of their capabilities -- despite this, it’s not too hard for the male, the right combination of powerful and pleasant, something they kept in mind when picking songs.

��는 별을 보자며 내 손을 끌어서 you pulled my hand, saying you wanted to see the stars 저녁노을이 진 옥상에 걸터앉아 we sat on the rooftop at sunset every time i look up in the sky yeah 근데 단 한 개도 없는 star yeah there’s not a single star yeah 괜찮아 네가 내 우주고 밝게 빛나 줘 it’s alright, you’re my universe, shine bright for me

rising up to match daniel’s more powerful song, he starts to sing rooftop, his voice hitting the higher notes with ease, feeling the melody and letting it carry him along, inserting the strong emotion he was known for having into his more ballad-like performances, then shifting into more faster lyrics with daniel harmonizing on the bottom line. he ends the section nicely, getting into character well.

fancy you 누가 먼저 좋아하면 어때 fancy you, who cares if who likes first

harmonizing with daniel on the first word, before letting his partner take over, hyojin finds himself again raising up a hand, making the rocker sign used in the twice choreography and copying the point dance loosely with his hand, still playing with ease due to the simplicity of the notes the arrangement allowed him for this segment, giving a knowing glance and a nod of approval at the members of the audience who did the same.

i'm gonna swing from the chandelier, from the chandelier i'm gonna live like tomorrow doesn't exist like it doesn't exist

this was his time to show off what was up his sleeve -- the little ace they had besides the creativity of the arrangement -- it’s not a hyojin performance without a little bit of his power, after all. he sings the sia song without hesitation, belting the notes without straining his voice and instead feeling the melody resound in him, a deeply satisfying feeling as he holds the high notes.

stopping his playing on a chord purposefully at the last line to emphasize the final high note, he closes his eyes briefly as he hits it, before opening them gently. to tie it off, they harmonize one more time, this time with hyojin snapping slightly below the microphone so it could be heard, but didn’t block out his voice.

with that, the end, and they bow, quickly packing up their instruments and making their way off the stage. of course, neither of them were perfect -- that was why they made the performance to cover each other’s blind spots and potential flaws, instead letting each other showcase their main talents and abilities without sacrificing stability. perhaps it wasn’t the most orthodox and thus not necessarily the safest option, but it was possible, nevertheless. at the end of the day, though, hyojin knows that it wouldn’t have been possible if he had been alone.

as he walks back to his seat, he turns to daniel with a bright smile, feeling refreshed, and says, “you’ve done well. thanks for being my partner, daniel.” he holds out his pinky finger instead of his hand, the gesture more final than all the times they’ve parted from before.

“let’s meet again, okay?"

#&. galaxy #rkmga5 #rkmga5duos2 #danielxrk #[[ mentioned!#rksakura #rkseunghun #rkwonpil #rkseungmin #rkxsungwoon #uhhh a lot of other people but those are the mains friends!#also #rkmason #wc: 3.2k+#ily2 carly!!!#we worked so hard on the timing guys T-T #please take care of us !

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regrettablewritings · 6 years

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Rq. Heimdall fanfic!!!!😍 There is not enough out there man. How about Cassian andor? Or Poe, your choice.😘 Sorry your reunion sucked so hard.

Yeah, Heimdall!!! I haven’t really seen any real fics about him despite the fact that he totally deserves them so I took it upon myself to try and contribute.And hey. Hey, bud. Why not both? (First up in Poe, tho)

How differently do they think of eachother now compared to when they first met?: Poe Dameron was notoriousthroughout the Resistance as being a hotshot both in terms of piloting and interms of his overall personhood. So of course, once you had the chance to meethim by way of being assigned his X-Wing to fix, you had been expecting somearrogant piece of fool who’s mansplain to you how the mechanicals worked and soon. Boy, were you not expecting a warm, humorous young man who didn’t try tospoon-feed you terms you already knew, but instead was perfectly willing toleave you to your own literal devices and even praise your handiwork! Because that was one of the first things Poe thought of when he met you: Thatyou were a skilled member and the Resistance was therefore honored to havesomebody like you.

It was inevitable that the two of you would cross paths more after that(especially considering that after impressing him with your workmanship, Poerequested that you be the one to work on his assigned aircrafts). Because ofthese frequent meetings, frequent conversation was held. Until eventually, youboth began to see one another without the need to work on an X-Wing or whathave you. And you started seeing one another out of your working uniforms, freeof sweat and grease. And conversations drifted away from exchanging ideas abouthow to make the ships run smoother, or what tools you needed; they started toorient more about your respective lives, which resulted in talking about yourexperiences, likes, dislikes, and so forth.Inevitably, your impressions of one another grew into something more vivid.You now knew Poe as quite possibly the kindest, most amazing man you’d evermet: He was skilled and quite humble even with his own acknowledgement of histalent for flying. He exuded warmth, and was loyal to a fault, if potentiallyfoolhardy in his determination. Plus, once you learned the origins of the ringhe wore around his neck, you were thrilled to learn that he was a romantic atheart!Poe now knew that the Resistance wasn’t lucky to have you – he was: You were like a grease-covereddiamond in the ruff who trusted her instincts and knowledge. You volunteeredyour own talents for a greater good and while Poe himself was one of many whodid the same, he still admired this fact because not just anyone would pick uptheir things, leave everything they’d ever known, and fight for a betterfuture. He loves it when people aredriven but most of all, he loves it when you’redriven.

What do their friends/family think oftheir relationship?: Poe would like to think that his parents would’veloved you. Specifically his mother, who would have more likely than not bothstarted and indulged in a geek-out fest over the types of things she’s flownand your hunger for the knowledge that surrounded their infrastructure. Theclosest person left that he has to a mother, however, is Leia. And while she’snot as prone to excitement over ship mechanics and the like, she still verymuch approves of the relationship (even going so far as to “threaten” Poe intobeing a gentleman – as if he could be anything but). If she catches the two ofyou embracing or kissing before he flies out on a mission, she’ll snark aboutthe two of you “being absolutely disgusting” in public with your affection.But most of all, the approval you’ll be wanting is from BB-8. And, to yourabsolute glee, they approve of you. They like how happy Poe seems to be aroundyou, and it helps that you earned their good graces by thinking they’re evencuter than Poe. Finn doesn’t see anything wrong with the two of you: You’re nice, you’re brave,and he thinks the two of you go great together. And as for Rey, you both bondover your shared and varying knowledges on knowing how to fix up transports bigand small. (Plus, she’s very flattered when you ask if she’ll teach you anyshortcuts you might not have learned due to your more formal yet restrictedtraining.)Your own friends are impressed and also a little jealous that you managed toland one of the most well-known figures in the Resistance – this man is thereason so many people joined, after all, in no small part due to his handsomeface being spread everywhere in advertisements. Some might even ask if youcould introduce them to him, stating that you can’t hog the Resistance’sgreatest pilot to yourself. You humor them, but by the end of the meeting,they’re always surprised to learn just how laidback he actually is. Good foryou!

How do their personalities/skillscomplement or contrast with each other?: Typically speaking, Poe just hasthis energy that brings out the best in people. His sweetness is just thatcontagious. And you were one of his many willing victims, becoming more open toaccompany his own honey-like character. Skills-wise, what else? His knowledge and experience with flying matchesperfectly with your own knowledge and experiences with working on aircrafts.

What is their favorite aspect of eachother?: Golly, how could you only choose one thing about him that you loved the most? You couldn’t choose betweenhis loyalty, his kindness, his generosity, his willingness to sacrifice, hisdrive – You just love his overall Poe-ness!Nearly the same goes for Poe: There’s just too much about you he adores. Butsomething that especially sticks out to him is how even if you consideryourself just another number in the grand scheme of the Resistance, your skillscontribute far beyond what you may initially see from the hangars. You are, ashe would put it, a spark that ignites a flame that keeps the Resistance going.(“You took that from somewhere, didn’t you?” “Even if I did, that doesn’tchange the truth!”)

Do either of them have pet peevesabout each other?: For the most part, Poe is pretty controlled andthoughtful. He can usually find the time to make a humored remark even in theface of a First Order commander or his own torturer. But even the brightestpeople can snap if under a certain amount of pressure: If Poe feels desperate,there’s a rare but still possible chance that he might be so ambitious that hemay act without thinking of the little details in the big picture. Sometimesit’s dangerous, but other times it’s just irritating to you.

How would each reconcile with eachother after a fight?: Couples’ tiffs are inevitable. But an actual argumentwith Poe is pretty uncommon. But that doesn’t make them unheard of. Poe isgenerally a very pleasant person but sometimes, that hotheaded stubbornnessthat you sometimes forget he has seeps through and drives him to storm off. Hemay blow steam by flying or aggressively cleaning his X-Wing or exercising,all while venting to BB-8. Eventually, whether it’s because Leia or BB-8 saidsomething, or because he ran out of fumes to run on, Poe will recognize thatreconciliation is necessary. No matter how passionately he may have felt aboutwhatever set the two of you off, his hatred of when the two of you fight iseven stronger. He admits that it’s a bit arrogant of him to feel this way, buthe’s just so used to generally getting along with everybody that even yoursmaller arguments have the potential to throw him off. After all, was he reallythat great of a person if he couldn’t even make his beloved happy?He tries not to fly off-planet after an argument because the last time he did,he nearly died and it really put into perspective just how silly and immatureit was for him to leave on such a note. As soon as he returned to base, he wassearching for you as a hungry man searches for food: vehemently anddesperately. The moment he found you, you didn’t have time to even react to hisreappearance before you found yourself pressed so firmly against his chest in abone-crushing hug that you could just barely breathe. And even once the hug slackened (only by a smidge), you couldn’t get a word inedge-wise because the pilot was blurting out apology after apology,self-deprecating himself and calling himself wrong for doing that to you andpromising how he could make it up to you even if it took the rest of his life.It took you patting his chest to cue him to shut up for you to verbally accepthis apology (“I messed up, too, you nerf-herder”) and return the hug.Even years down the line, he holds up to that principle. It can be weeks afteran argument and you’ve long-since moved passed it but when he comes back from amission, he’s brought something from another planet for you (you now have acollection going for you that you keep tucked away in a safety box so as toavoid damage). You wish you could do the same but since you never really havethe chance to fly elsewhere and acquire gifts for him. So you try and becreative and make little things for him out of what you have on D’Qar: You tryto find leftover pieces from ships that can no longer serve their initialpurpose and fashion them into little decorations

What would be their ideal vacationgetaway together?: It’s really hard to think about vacations when one is involvedin a resistance movement. Especially when one is also a pilot who constantlyflies to new locations nearly on the daily. Poe tries not to tarnish thebeautiful landscapes he comes upon with associations as to why he’s there (toretrieve info, a person, sabotage, etc). Instead, he tries to remember the morebeautiful or unique aspects of the places he visits. This is not only to givehim a peace of mind and to give him one more thing to fight for the future for,but also to bring back to you. As stated before, you never really get to travel off-planet due to yourground-bound job, so you’re always curious as to what other places may looklike. Poe is all too happy to tell you about the places he’s been, the thingshe saw and ate there, the many different cultures. He loves how you practicallyglow with intrigue as he recounts the rituals he’s witnessed and what theyapparently mean for the locals. He knows that wars take time to end, and thisone is no exception. But a very giddy (and admittedly childish) part of himreally hopes that the tide turns in favor of the Resistance and that all thisfighting would be done all ready with no more planetary destruction. He wantsto start living an easier life with you, to actually start living life withyou. He’s already taken mental notes of the planets you responded to the mostand can’t wait to take you there and watch you glow as you see their respectivebeauties in person.

Think of a new way (AU, differentsituation, etc.) they could have met for the first time: You were an idiot.You were an idiot who bought into the beauty of eating in the courtyard of thisSan Franciscan café and now, for deciding to eat outside, you were going to diein this absurd heat. You sighed even though you immediately regretted feelingthe subsequent warmth of your breath running over your skin. It was too late totake it all back, though: Judging by the constant glances you made at thewindows of the actual establishment, Café Madrinna’s insides were now filled tocapacity for the lunch rush. You tried not to whimper, gripping your ice-coldglass of water with the hopes of relief.Your friend, much to your envy and despair, appeared to be unaffected by theWest Coast heat as she continued to chatter about the divine nature of the miniaturequiches this place served.“ – and the spinach-cheese ones? To die for,(Y/N),” she went on, gesturing just as dramatically as her claim. You noddedhalf-heartedly, only partially paying attention. The other part was trying tofocus on not passing out in public.If you couldn’t be in the A/C-cooled building, then the only other thing youwanted more was for a waiter to come by so you could request another cold drink,order your food, and get out of here as soon as possible.Your voice’s voice carried on with the one-sided conversation, quickly blurringinto little more than white noise. In fact, everything was beginning to fadefrom your stance due to you swearing that you were melting. It was therefore abit of a wonder to you that one noise didmake it through your disappearing interest. Though, not by much. After all, it’shard to ignore the sound of a microphone screeching.You flinched, faintly hearing others “ooh” and hiss as they cringed.“Sorry! Sorry … Testing, testing. 1, 2, 1, 2,” a voice magnified by the micsaid. You wanted to start whimpering but lacked the energy; the last thing youwanted was for yet another source of stimuli to overwhelm you. Plus, if somebodystarted to play music, it would require even more energy for you to speak up tothe waiter. Where the hell they were. You were so filled with spite that youmustered just enough strength to turn your head. It lulled lazily on your neckand, had you thought about it, ultimately dampened whatever effect your annoyedglare could’ve provided.Not that it mattered: It didn’t last very long anyway. It couldn’t possibly holdits own once you saw exactly whom you were intended to direct your ire.He was cute, but not in a little boy sort of way. You couldn’t quite place it,but you supposed it had something to do with the lax demeanor he carried abouthimself. … But he also had a guitar with him as he sat on a stool before the mic.The frown threatened to make its way back onto your face. California Guy +Guitar = Memories of Asshole in the Quad at College Trying to Pick Up Chicks. Grabbing the mic, he greeted, “Afternoon, ladies and gents and other heavenlybodies,” he greeted.” He offered a smile, revealing his crooked butnevertheless adorable teeth (how could teeth be adorable, you had no idea).“Anyway,” he said, getting into position, “here’s ‘Wonderwall.’”Oh, God, no!“Nah, I’m just kidding.” A handful of people chuckled. You nearly sighed withrelief.“But seriously … Here goes something.”The sound of the strings being plucked proved to be anything but the nuisanceyou had expected them to be. In fact, the chords seemed to flow through the airlike silk, curling in waves before caressing your ears. But it couldn’t compareto the smooth, almost husky voice with which the musician sang.“That certain night, the night we met,There was magic abroad in the air.There were angels dining at the RitzAnd a nightingale sang in Berkeley Square.”Perhaps it was a heat-induced delirium, but part of you suspected the man’svoice of being supernatural: You no longer focused on the heat; in fact, youcould barely determine if you were actually hot anymore. “I may be right and I may be wrong,But I’m perfectly willing to swearThat when you turned and smiled at me,A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square.”The way with which he delivered the lyrics seemed to serve as almost a portal,offering you an oasis to recuperate from. A balmy evening scene painted itselfin your head, the man’s voice serving as both paintbrush and palette. You barely responded to your waiter as they finally came by your table (now ofall times) to retrieve your orders. You dared yourself to not look away as youmarveled how the man’s eyelashes fluttered with his perpetual bedroom eyes. Bedroom eyes that … were looking right at you. Sure enough, you could see the those dark eyes of his staring specifically atyou. A stare so unbroken that you could see the warmth in those optics and bereminded of a cozy little nook where one could be gathered into a quilt and sleepin its cloth embrace.It was perhaps this observation that revived the heat in you. Only, instead ofit being a painful, bodily heat beaten onto your skin by the sun, this heatseemed to stay specifically in your face and ears.Crud. It only worsened when the man,still staring at you, flashed you another crooked-toothed smile. Double crud!“The moon that lingered over London town –Poor puzzled moon, he wore a frown …” With far too much ease, he liftedhimself from his seat. He started walking slowly away from the designated performancespot, never once missing a beat. “How could he know we two were so inlove?The whole darn world seemed … upside down!” His voice continued, appearingto be unaffected by the lack of microphone as his singing still rang throughoutthe dining area. That would have impressed you, had it not been for yourheartbeat muting out almost everything. He was coming closer! To you! You could feel yourself panicking inside, eyes skittering about you in afruitless attempt to locate an escape route. You glanced back up. He was tenfeet away. Six feet. Four feet. Three. Two.“The streets of town were paved withstarsIt was such a romantic affair.And as we kissed and said goodnight,A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square.”Oh, God. He was here. In front of you. On one knee, still playing along, voicestill carried through that cute smile of his. His stare was still on you.Everybody’s stare was on you. Your friend gushed in her seat, fists balled intoher cheats as she quietly geeked out at what was happening to you. You, on theother hand, were two-parts mortified, two-parts twelve seconds away from goingyour own gushing.Certainly, it was not good for your hatred of being the center of attention ina public space for you to be serenaded. But on the flip-side, you were being serenaded! This was the sort of stuff you’d onlyever seen in movies or Youtube videos. This wasn’t the sort of stuff thathappened to people like you! Or at least, that was what you’d thought before. Butthis man was proving otherwise as his fingers practically waltzed along thestrings of his guitar, treating you to a wordless solo that brought a piece ofyour mind back to the night scene. It now included him in there, with thosewarm eyes and kissable smile. Holding hands, walking along the streets – that that gooey romantic stuff youtried your best not to get too caught up in. But, oh, he made it look and soundso wonderful!In fact, it was that same wonderful voice that gently pulled you back toreality on a high note – literally.“Aaaaand like an echo far away,A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square,” he crooned. Before he got up, heoffered you quite possibly the smoothest wink you’d ever bore witness to. Hisfingers were still strumming as he slowly returned to his original placement. By the time you’d remembered to clap, the audience had already been holdingapplause for ten seconds. He took a small bow, glowing grin in place. He leanedinto the microphone once more:“Thank you so much! Wow, uh … Okay, I’ll be taking a ten-minute break so .. . I guess hang tight!”His eyes didn’t return to you as he turned around and exited the outside. Asmuch as you felt a little disappointed by this fact, you couldn’t blame him.++++++“What’s the matter? You haven’t eaten much …” Your friend nodded at yourplate. You shook your head, “Nothing, it’s just – I’m pacing myself.” You directed abite-sized piece in a circle with your fork. Your companion pursed her lips indoubt.“I’m calling bull on that,” she muttered, taking a bite of the quiche she’dbeen going on about all day. “I think I know the reason.” The delivery of thatsentence threatened a chill to go down your spine; you knew what was coming. And sure enough, as you looked up, you weremet with a taunting smirk.“Tummy in a tizzy? ‘Cause that cutie sang to you? Be still, your beating heart!”You attempted to glare through your blushing, aching face. “Quiet, you!” you hissed. You really didn’t want to hear this: Both because ofembarrassment, but also because you just wanted to forget about that guyalready. You wanted to scarf down your food, pack up, and leave this barbaricheat and never come back! … If only you could actually will yourself to eat–“Uh … Hey, excuse me? Sorry if I’m interrupted but –”Your friend’s eyes widened as she looked upwards of the tableside. You, on theother hand, dared not look for once: You knew exactly who it was.“Yeah, so, uh …” A sugar cookie with frosting decorated to resemble a sun wasplaced on your napkin. Okay, now youhad to look. You mustered the courage to look at the musician, trying your best to appearcalm and collected yet confused when in reality, you were inwardly flustered,nervous, and confused. The simple bite of his lip almost broke you.“I just wanted to apologize for earlier,” he said. “I usually work best whenthere’s a, you know, specific person in mind to sing for. But I realized alittle too late it’s not everybody’s style so … Cookie.” You could swearyou saw his cheeks hinting red.You regarded the cookie.“It’s … I mean, that was okay, you were only –”“No, it isn’t,” your friend cut in. You and the musician immediately looked ather, both your faces painted with perplexity.“What?” you uttered. Your friend just shook her head.“A cookie isn’t gonna cut it. The poor dear can’t even eat, you made her sonervous with that performance! In fact, I dare say you owe her an actual meal!”Your mouth dropped, eyes widening. What in the ever-living Hell was this bichdoing?!Before you could recite exactly that, your friend practically shot up from herseat.“Lemme get out your way so that the two of you can talk this out. By the time Icome back, I’d better hear the location, price range, everything about thedate!” (At the utterance of “date”, you swore you could feel your heart drop throughyour abdomen.) “For my approval, of course,” she added. Nothing and nobody could stop her fromthen leaving, practically frolicking into the café building. Leaving you andthe man alone …He actually seemed mostly unfazed. He shrugged, “She’s got a point … Thisplace has decent cookies, but that’s not exactly great compensation.” He plopped himself in the now free chair and scooched in.“I’m Poe, by the way,” he said, offering you his hand. You blinked. He … He was seriously okay with this?! Apparently so.“(Y/N),” you returned, accepting the handshake. It was warm, just likeeverything else about him. Only this time, you didn’t mind the heat as itsurged through you, from your hand to your head.

#i decided to reference oscar's own statement that he sees Poe as being a West Coast jazz musician #because that's just the best goddamn AU for him #besides y'know: Scion!Poe ;)c #poe dameron x reader #poe dameron imagine #poe dameron imagines #tfa imagine #tfa imagines #the force awakens imagine #the force awakens imagines #regrettablewritings #character ship #character ship meme

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madaramaddymad · 7 years

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hey, i found out you're a zodiac maniac, so i would like to ask if you could guess Madara's chart??

OMG YES OFC I WILL DO IT RIGHT NAW

Madara Uchiha Natal Chart

Sun sign: basic identity, “true self”, our ego

Sun sign in♑(Capricorn)

{taken from Naruto data)

Capricorn is all about hard work and dedication to what you’re doing. Those born under this sign are more than happy to put in a full day at the office, realizing that it will likely take a lot of those days to get to the top. That’s no problem, since Capricorns are both ambitious and determined: they will get there.The Capricorn-born are extremely dedicated to their goals, almost to the point of stubbornness. Those victories sure smell sweet, though, and that thought alone will keep Capricorns going.The Goat symbolizes Capricorns, and an apt mascot it is. Goats love to climb to the top of the mountain, where the air is clear and fresh. In much the same way, Capricorns want to get to the top of their chosen field so that they can reap the benefits of success; namely fame, prestige and money. Getting to the top isn’t always a walk in the park, however, so it’s likely that Goats will ruffle a few feathers along the way. These folks can indeed be domineering, even egotistical, on their route to the top.Thankfully, Capricorns are patient, too, and are happy to wait for their ship to come in. The flip side to this staid behavior is that Goats can become quite unforgiving of those who aren’t as diligent or ambitious as they are. Capricorns need to remember that they do need allies along the way, ambitious or otherwise. In any case, once Capricorns receive the recognition and social status they so fervently crave, it’s likely that all will be forgiven.The great strengths of the Capricorn-born are their willingness to work hard and their determination to succeed. Their ambition is boundless, yet they are cautious, responsible and always play fair. That’s why their successes are all the more sweet.

Rising/ Ascending sing: the first impression we make on others to a personal level, how we come across to strangers, a mask we wear in public.

Rising/ Ascending in♑(Capricorn)

{Madara has to deal with resposibilites from young age, is expected to act like a big brother, life faces him with death for the closest one to him, he is being betrayed by the clan, he leaves the vilage, his ego is hurt and turns into a great villian. He’s egoistic and selfish, wanting to destroy everything alive.}

Usually Capricorn risings are the most fucked up in life. They face the most obstacles of all. It’s due to Saturb (the ruler of Capri). Saturn is the old, boring and strict school teacher, that we always neglect and never listen. His lessons are important and only few are willing to learn them. The ones who are taught their lesson, succeed double. The reward would be bigger than ever.

Capricorn Ascendant people project competence. They simply ooze it. They’re generally very image-conscious people–the clothes they wear and their manner are a big deal to them. They want to appear successful, and they generally succeed!Capricorn rising people are generally big on family, and forever worry about security–for themselves and their dependents. They come across to others as hard-working, competent, and dependable people. What others may not see under that cool, even suave, exterior, is an inner struggle: they often ask themselves, “Am I doing enough?”, “Do I deserve all of this?”, “How can I make things better?” They worry a lot about the future.If success seemed to have come easy to these folks, it hasn’t. They just made it look that way with a patient, hard-working, driven personality. More often than not, Capricorn rising individuals are success stories. Their childhoods may have been difficult, but they slowly but surely turn their lives around. Saturn rules this Ascendant, and this generally means a kind of backwards way of living–as children, they are serious and bear a lot of responsibility; and as they grow up, they age beautifully, learning how to loosen up.

Moon: emotional instincts and habits, deepest personal needs, the sun is the head- moon is the heart

Moon in♌(Leo)

{Madara explodes kinda easily, short temper, laughs pridely and everything is about his pride and ego. This combination along x2 Capicorns, turn him into a great villian}

Leo Moon likes to be the center of attention when they are comfortable in the situation. Those born with the Moon in Leo are talented organizers, and may bring that out to the point of trying to organize and control their friends and family. Their natural bossiness helps them be good at delegating chores to others, although deep down they really want to treat others fairly.Leo Moon needs a lot of love to do well in the world. They can be overly dramatic if they feel slighted, and they are prone to sulking. Luckily, they prefer to perform their scenes in the privacy of their home. Public displays may hurt their image. They would rather appear dignified in public, since social status is everything. They may be a bit vain or snobbish, but they are very loyal.They are usually popular and sociable, and they have a lot of integrity. Their sense of justice is strong, and they are usually easy to reason with. They are passionate, but may tend towards exaggeration.Pride is Leo Moon’s downfall. Their ego pushes them to take charge of everything, which may make them appear domineering. They are attracted to power and status. Stubbornness is a trait that helps them get what they want. At the same time, they can be very idealistic and make great personal sacrifices if they believe in a cause.Those born under the Moon Sign Leo do not take advice well, though they are happy to give it. They have a lot in common with the cat they feel they are always right and no one should tell them what to do. They may be materialistic, but they accept responsibility with grace and honor. They can face adversity without falling apart, and when fortune smiles upon them, they are always willing to share.

Mercury: communication, intellect, speech, mind

Mercury in♌(Leo)

{everything during the war is how prideful his words are, he is never afraid to tell what he thinks and he usually stands behind it, even blindly follows his ego, thats why at the end he gets up fucked by Kagyua. Also the double leo would give him such piky, mane hair)

Mercury in Leo speaks with style and authority. Some may come across as know-it-alls, but they really just want to share their knowledge with everyone else. They hold their opinions very dear and take pride in their beliefs. They tend to be idealistic. Mercury in Leo has a good intellect, and they love to express themselves. In fact, creativity is very important to them. They excel in presenting themselves with drama and style. Passionate and enthusiastic when speaking, Mercury Leo is usually successful in getting their point across.They may be oversensitive to anything they consider less than praise. They can appear rather arrogant due to their natural detachment. Mercury in Leo has their ego tied to their intellect, which sometimes makes it difficult for them to separate fact from fiction. They make natural leaders and people are inclined to follow them because of their charisma. Leo Mercury can be stubborn, especially when crossed. They follow their passions, acting spontaneously in the moment.Mercury in Leo needs to watch out for false pride, intolerance, being full of themselves and needed praise for everything they do. While their need for admiration is evident, they do deserve it a good portion of the time.

Venus: love, harmony, our style, how we dress up, our soft loving side

Venus in♍(Virgo)

{he wouldn’t shut up critisizing, he is the ultimate judgeman, knows all your flaws and during the Leos in him, wouldn’t mind telling them, yet the great Madara Uchiha is shy to pee whenever someone’s standing behind him)

Virgo Venus is not the flirtatious kind. They are willing to work on their relationships and dedicate themselves to make them work. They aren’t out to show off or impress anyone. While they don’t shower their partner with showy gifts, they may actually be more generous with gifts of devotion.Virgo Venus will quietly work their way into your heart. They are sensitive, if a little insecure, and many people find this reserved loner very attractive. They usually play it safe and they must know that you like them before they’ll make the tiniest move. They are great listeners, and they spend time observing your habits and reactions so they know all the ins and outs of your personality. Like a small child with a crush, they may indicate their interest by being a nuisance. When they criticize, they are not trying to hurt you; however… they are trying to help! To make a Venus in Virgo person happy, show them how much you appreciate all the little things they do for you. They will do a whole lot for their partner in small, quiet ways that are not always noticed. They may need a little space once in awhile.The Venus in Virgo person does not jump into relationships easily. They take time to make themselves important parts of their partner’s life. Instead of revealing all in a romantic scene, they tend to be self-restrained and very selective. They can be very critical at times, but you can take comfort in the fact that this most discriminating sign has chosen you for a reason. They don’t like people who have habits they dislike, and they appreciate someone who is punctual.In friendship, Virgo Venus likes to be needed and useful. When taken advantage of, however, you may begin to feel unappreciated. They are quiet and analytical, and very choosy who they have for friends.The Venus in Virgo person comes across as someone who has a lot of integrity. They don’t play mind games and their loner personality is intriguing to some people. They have a bit of mystery about them, and they protect their privacy. They are very trustworthy, if a bit aloof.

Mars: how a person goes after goals, courage, sex drive, agression, will, energy

Mars in ♑(Capricorn)

{everytime Madara explosed once being child, he always apologized to Hashirama. As he grew older, he cooled down the Leo in himself and the Capricorn mars appeared more, as being a big more self-controled in agression, but this turns him into a “sadist”. Also contanting so many Capricorn makes him adore History and the leo is admiring legends, in fact, he wants to be one of them and reminds him of himself)

Mars in Capricorn is orderly and subdued. They like to be in control of their life. They are determined, but they keep everything low-key. They like to be on top of things in their life. They like to set their goals and focus on achieving them. They are not flamboyant, but they can be ambitious. They want to be secure, and they will do whatever it takes to succeed.When Capricorn Mars is angry, it is a level-headed, cool type of anger. They have a strong sense of self-control that encompasses all areas of their life. They don’t like to see anything go to waste. They are afraid of letting loose and getting out of control.Capricorn Mars is responsible and reliable. They work hard and they keep their nose to the grindstone. They have a tendency to become workaholics. They want to attain status and recognition for their work. They are very practical and can turn a profit from almost anything they put their minds to. They do tend towards caution, which can be detrimental in some cases. They are also skeptical of new ideas. It is difficult for them to break old habits. They can be pessimistic and may come across as too serious.Mars in Capricorn has a strong libido and appreciates sensual experiences. This is hidden behind their conservative face. It is hard to let this side show. Once they reveal the real person inside, you won’t be disappointed. They don’t rush, but take their time, enjoying the moment. Conventional and straightforward, they give quite a bit to their partner, although they expect quite a bit in return. They are not into experimenting with new techniques. They appreciate discretion. They want the security of a long-term relationship. If they are focused on their career, they have the capability of suppressing their sexual urges completely if needed so they are not distracted. They have a lot of endurance.

#madara uchiha #zodiac signs #capricorn sun #capricorn rising #leo moon #leo mercury #moon in leo #mercury in leo #capricorn ascendant #venus virgo #venus in virgo #capricorn mars #mars in capricorn

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smartworkingpackage · 7 years

Text

Podcast: Taking Note of Radical Candor with Kim Scott

Feedback is hard. Giving it, receiving it, absorbing it, acting on it — all of these things require openness and a willingness to communicate honestly.

But whether we’re talking about our personal relationships, our professional lives, or society itself, dealing with feedback is essential if we want to meet our goals, grow, and improve.

In Episode 3 of our new podcast, we look at feedback in two forms. First, we chat with Gerald Hastie, Evernote’s Director of Customer Experience, to learn more about how Evernote’s customer support and Help Center are working to address feedback from the public. Then we sit down with Kim Scott, author of the new book Radical Candor: Be a Kickass Boss without Losing your Humanity, to learn how building a culture of candor at work can help us all become more effective in whatever we do.

Listen now:

Length: 40 minutes iTunes | SoundCloud | Google Play | MP3 | RSS

Highlights of our conversation with Kim Scott are transcribed below. To hear the complete interview and subscribe to future episodes of “Taking Note,” head over to iTunes, SoundCloud, or Google Play.

You’ve talked about the universality of some of the issues that you see [working with CEOs]. What are some of the things that come up most frequently?

I think one of the things that people struggle with most is how to create a culture of feedback. Part of the problem is that you know as a manager that you’re supposed to give feedback. That’s very nerve-wracking, for two reasons. From the time most of us learn to speak, we had one or two parents who told us some version of “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all.” We’ve been trained since we were 18 months old not to give feedback and now all of a sudden it’s your job to do it.

We’ve been trained since we were 18 months old not to give feedback and now all of a sudden it’s your job to do it.

I think the other part of the problem is that around the time we’re 18 years old, we get told be “professional.” For too many people that gets translated to mean leave all of your vulnerabilities, leave all of your emotions, leave your humanity, the very best part of yourself, at home and come to work like some kind of robot.

Both of those factors combine to make giving feedback really hard. They also combine to make leaders forget that they’re actually supposed to solicit it before they start giving it. Don’t dish it out until you prove you can take it.

I know your work with Sheryl Sandberg, when she was with Google, was key to the development of your approach and your thinking in these terms. What’s the story there?

Shortly after I joined Google, I had to give a presentation to the CEO and the founders about the AdSense business. When I walked into the presentation, I felt a little nervous like any normal person would in that situation. The good news, however, was that the business was on fire. When I said how many new customers we had added over the last month or so, Eric Schmidt, the CEO, sort of jerked his head up out of his computer and said, “What did you say? What resources do you need to keep this business miracle alive? Do you need more engineers? Do you need marketing dollars?” I felt like the meeting had gone pretty well. In fact, I felt like a genius.

As I was leaving the meeting, I passed by Sheryl Sandberg, my boss, and I was expecting a high-five or some sort of congrats. Instead, she said, “Why don’t you walk back to my office with me?” I thought, oh boy, I did something wrong. I’m sure I’m about to hear about it.

The really good news was that there was a lot of good news. Sheryl started with that. But, she said eventually, “You know, you said ‘um’ a lot in there. Were you aware of it?” At this point, I breathed a huge sigh of relief and I made a brush off gesture with my hand. I said, “I know; it’s a verbal tic, it’s no big deal.” Sheryl said, “I know a really good speech coach and Google would pay for it. Would you like an introduction?” I made the brush off gesture with my hand again. I said, “No, I’m busy. Didn’t you hear about all these new customers?”

At this point, Sheryl stopped in her tracks and she looked me in the eye and she said, “I’m going have to be a lot more direct with you. When you say ‘um’ every third word, it makes you sound stupid.”

Now, a lot of people would have said that it was mean of Sheryl to say that I sounded stupid, but in fact, it was the very kindest thing she could have done for me. It was what she had to do in order to get through to me. The reason why it was such a kindness was that when I went to see the speech coach, I learned that she really wasn’t exaggerating. I literally did say ‘um’ every third word.

The thing that struck me in that moment was that nobody had told me that I had this problem. It was like I had been going through my whole career with a giant hunk of spinach between my teeth and nobody had had the courtesy to tell me about it. Once Sheryl told me about it, I could fix it.

Now we’re getting into the concept of Radical Candor, that notion of caring personally and challenging directly. We hear a lot of talk about constructive criticism, but ‘constructive’ is a very cold word. I think when you talk about caring personally, that makes it a bit more immediate. Is there a difference between constructive criticism and Radical Candor?

Yes. I’m really glad you raised the question of constructive criticism because it’s a bugaboo of mine. One of the problems with the term ‘constructive criticism’ is that it implies that you can control how the other person reacts to what you say.

There’s a big difference between Radical Candor and obnoxious aggression.

The big difference between Radical Candor and constructive criticism is that Radical Candor, first of all, applies to both praise and criticism, and caring personally is about acknowledging the other person as an independent human being. If they do get upset, it’s about reacting to that upset with compassion, not imagining that if you just found the right words they wouldn’t get upset. Again, Radical Candor is caring personally and challenging directly at the same time. There’s a big difference between Radical Candor and obnoxious aggression.

There’s a very simple and direct visualization of this that you use a lot where Radical Candor is one quadrant of a graph. Could you walk us through those four quadrants? It explains what happens when you have both the caring personally and challenging directly when you lack one or the other and when you have neither.

When you care personally and challenge directly, that’s Radical Candor. When you challenge directly but fail to show that you care personally, that’s obnoxious aggression. When you care personally but you fail to challenge directly, that’s ruinous empathy, and when you fail on both dimensions, which we all do from time to time, it’s what I call manipulative insincerity.

When we get so busy or so stressed or so reactive that we fail to show that we care personally and don’t bother to challenge directly, that’s where really insidious behavior, political behavior, office politics comes in, passive aggressive behavior.

These are strong words: “ruinous” and “obnoxious” and “manipulative,” but you’re not kidding. There are real implications to failing to achieve Radical Candor, right? What are some of the things that happen to organizations which miss the mark?

The most common mistake that I see made in organizations is ruinous empathy where people really do care about one another; they don’t want to hurt each other’s feelings. Therefore, when somebody makes a mistake, when work isn’t nearly good enough, they fail to say so. Also, when they offer praise to people, they offer praise in a way that is aimed at bolstering their ego or just making them feel better as opposed to showing what was really genuinely great.

In those cultures of ruinous empathy, people don’t do the best work of their lives. It’s impossible for a person to see in the moment when they’re making a mistake. We rely on each other to show us when we’re making a mistake. When we don’t provide that service to one another, then we don’t do our best work. It’s a shame. It’s a lost opportunity.

Part of the reason why I named each of these quadrants so flamboyantly is to provide a really strong warning about what happens. You don’t want to ruin your people. I think one of the things that I have found in my coaching that really helps people is to think of your [own] story. What’s a time in your career when you had a boss who told you something that really helped you improve?

It’s not just about dealing with problems; it’s about preventing problems. I can see how there could be implications in this, not just in terms of how people are performing but also how a team works together, their productivity or their creativity or their happiness in the workplace. Is that true?

Absolutely. When a team of people feels that they can’t tell each other when something’s going wrong, that they can’t say this pixel is not right or this presentation is not right or your idea doesn’t feel quite right, when they repress all that, meetings start to feel like getting stuck in traffic. There’s the meeting before the meeting and the meeting after the meeting. When problems don’t get fixed, life is depressing. Let’s make new mistakes. Let’s really try to make things better. Let’s fix the old mistakes and make new ones together.

I think that’s also when we start to see offices devolve into politics and passive-aggressive situations.

It’s also important to realize very often what happens in office situations or just in any human relationship, really, is somebody will cross the line and be a jerk and then the advice that they get is instead of moving up on the “care personally” dimension, they just back off their challenge. This happens all the time, the false apology. It’s happened to me. I’m sure it’s happened to you.

It seems safer just to remain silent, but it’s not safe. It’s depressing.

If you can force yourself not to back off your challenge when you realize you’ve been a jerk, but instead to react with compassion to the other person’s emotions, then I think we can avoid the passive-aggressive kind of behavior. It seems safer just to remain silent, but it’s not safe. It’s depressing.

Do you find anyone takes to this naturally? Are there certain personality types that are more responsive to it?

I think that for the vast majority of people it’s hard. It’s definitely hard. It’s tempting to say that some cultures are naturally Radically Candid. Certainly, Radical Candor looks very different in Tel Aviv than it does in Tokyo. Sometimes people think that it’s harder if you come from a polite culture. Often when I’ll talk to a team of Brits they’ll say, “It’s much harder for us,” but in fact, I don’t find that to be the case. I think that everybody struggles to find the right way to say something to another person.

I’m also curious if there are any special considerations or nuances to the concept when you’re dealing with female leaders. So many people now still have to deal with this double-standard where being forthright and blunt might be considered a positive trait in a male manager and a negative trait in a female manager.

It’s hard to be Radically Candid with someone who looks like you. It’s even harder to be Radically Candid with someone who doesn’t look like you regardless of what the dimensions of that not looking like you are.

Specifically to the topic of gender, I think if you’re a male boss and you have female direct reports, there’s a good chance that you have a tendency to pull your punches with the women on your team in a way you don’t with the men, to give less feedback or gentler feedback. It’s not because of some sort of deep-seated terrible misogyny. It’s because you want to be a nice guy and you want to be supportive of the women. Just remembering that you need to give women the same kind of feedback that you give the men on your team is really, really helpful.

Now, if you’re a woman and you’re being Radically Candid, you’re much more likely to get unjustly accused of obnoxious aggression. This is the “abrasive” problem. This is the “bossy” problem.

This is when the name-calling starts.

Here’s my advice on that. First of all, it’s important to just recognize it for what it is. There’s a time and a place to reject that feedback. Just put on your tough suit and continue to show that you care personally, but whatever you do, don’t back off your willingness to challenge directly. Because even if you get accused of obnoxious aggression unfairly, that’s actually a better place to be than ruinous empathy or manipulative insincerity, which is where you’re going to wind up if you back off that challenge. Move up on the “care personally” axis but don’t back off your willingness to challenge directly.

Also, a word of caution on the caring personally thing. Often women wind up getting asked to do the office housework. There’s a great essay that Virginia Woolf wrote called “The Angel in the House.” She was referring to this Victorian poem about how women have no wants or needs of their own but just there to support the men. It’s a ridiculous poem.

Unfortunately what happens sometimes is that women are expected to be the angel in the office. You’ll burn out and be really pissed off if you get sucked into that path. You want to show you care personally, but don’t get sucked into becoming the angel in the office.

This is obviously a management concept. But as we talk, this sounds very much like something that isn’t just top-down but something that an entire team might want to adopt or even that might go the opposite way, might go from bottom up.

I hate hierarchical language — but it’s got to go up, down and sideways.

The first step is to ask for criticism. Not just ask for criticism but demand criticism. As hard as it is to give criticism, it’s also awkward to ask for it.

The first step is to ask for criticism. Not just ask for criticism but demand criticism.

Then paradoxically you have to embrace the discomfort. It’s awkward for the other person and it’s tempting for them to just say everything’s fine. You’ve got to actually make it more uncomfortable for the person to tell you nothing than to tell you something.

Then you’ve got to listen to what is said with the intent to understand it, not to respond, not to get defensive. You’ve really got to manage that tendency to get defensive.

Then finally, you’ve got to reward the truth. If somebody points out a problem and you agree it’s a problem, fix it. Tell them that you fixed it. If you disagree that it’s a problem, find whatever that nugget of what they said that you can agree with and then come back to them a couple of days later when you’re definitely calmer, cooler and not defensive and explain.

That all makes a lot of sense. [Radical Candor] sounds difficult, but it all makes a lot of sense.

It sounds hard but when you start doing it and seeing the results, it’ll start to feel like exercising regularly. It’ll be hard not to do it. You’ll feel gross. It’ll be like brushing your teeth. You’ll feel gross when you don’t do it.

You can hear the complete interview and subscribe to future episodes of “Taking Note” at iTunes, SoundCloud, or Google Play

NOTE: Kim also spoke about Radical Candor at the SXSW conference last week. Check out our notes from the SXSW Workplace Track!

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