Advice Formula:
I’m sure I’m not just speaking for myself but we all need to be humble and modest enough to ask for advice. Most people will love to give advice as we are genetically predisposed to giving advice, it just comes down to the question whether it’s good advice. Just because the advice was given it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right advice, or the right advice for you or if that was the right time for you to ask for advice or most importantly the right person to ask advice from. For example: in my business as well as most businesses hiring and managing a team is a continuous challenge so I would periodically reach out to other entrepreneurs and ask for their perspective on what I was struggling with at the time, to pick their brain and ask for advice. In many cases it would help and in many it would not. Here is where I learned a lesson and a formula that put a good perspective in me understanding the importance and the appropriateness of timing advice in my advantage.
Me + good advice = no change no results
Me + good advice x (person i admire and look up to) = change and positive outcome
Why was this the most significant formula to follow? Because when the advice was given to make the necessary changes in my business or personal life if I didn’t relate to the message I did not see myself implementing it. Although I could follow the advice and it was good change for me I would not initiate as I did not want their outcome, I did not relate to who they were. Now, when you ask for advice from someone you admire and look up to it’s a different story. Admire means you want to be where they are, you wouldn’t mind being like them therefore you wouldn’t mind mimicking them. And sometimes you only have one or two shots to implement a good change in business, relationship or fitness. When an out of shape person tells you to run and do push ups to get in shape you will disregard that advice most of the time. When a physically fit person gives the same fitness advice you will take it seriously, you will actually implement it as you admire or look up to that person or their results that you are seeking. Sometimes the advice from the person you admire can be not as good as the person you do not, although it’s irrelevant but a bad plan that you implement is better than a great plan sitting on a peace of paper. Getting the advice is a message that gets accepted better from the right person, acceptance is a key in implementing. When you see yourself implementing and you focus more on the journey VS just focusing on the results it becomes easier to implement and get to the goal one step at a time. Too many great ideas fail just because they are either never implemented or implemented but not driven to the finish as the end result seems unachievable due to only focusing on the destination not the journey.
Here is another formula approach to right advice. Best advice is not necessarily the right advice but rather the right advice from the right person.
RA + RP = RR (right advice + Right Person = Right Results) or positive outcome. Big part of being able to control or should I say be positive with any outcome of any probability is feel good doing it and how can you feel bad if the advice was from the right person and the right person will most likely tell you that you might not have the results you’re seeking but that’s ok so even if the outcome is not controlled it’s always desired and never doubted. This brings me to the last point on advice, be careful who you ask advice from and who you give advice to as you or the other person just might believe in it.