Do you want my advice?

I have some advice. However, I recently read that before giving advice, one should always ask a particular question and, surprisingly, it's not "have you got a paper and pen ready for these pearls of wisdom I'm about to drop?" Instead we should ask: "Do you want my advice?"

- JENNIE RIDYARD

I tried it recently on my son, the immunologist visiting from Paris where he's doing a PhD. He was telling me some long, science-based, academia-heavy story and I was nodding along like I understood – I didn't – but I do feel that I understand human relations quite well so I opened my mouth to give him my recommendations.

It's what we mummies do, even when our babies are in their twenties and living and working and paying their own rent in a foreign city. Mother knows best. And then I remembered. "Do you want my advice?" I said instead.