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One of the most amazing things about life is that each one is unique. So unique, that you can’t just copy what the next person is doing and expect to succeed. The problem though, is that this scares the crap out of most of us. It’s scary to realize that we are basically charting the course of our lives.
Think about it. Billions of people have walked the face of this earth but not one of those people ever experienced the details and intricacies of your life as you know it. Amazing isn’t it? Every day that you wake up, you are seeing things from a perspective that nobody else is privileged to have and you are charting a course that nobody else can mimic precisely. So why is 90% of our adult population on a constant hunt for that magical piece of advice that will make their universe line up perfectly?
Before you whip out your machetes, understand that I am not saying that taking advice is bad. Not at all. All I am saying is that advice needs to be taken with a big table spoon of salt. If you read my previous article on learning to be yourself, I hope that you have already started taking steps to really get to know yourself. Can you articulate your strengths? weaknesses? talents? Opinions or beliefs? These are the basic foundations for being able to think on your own and make decisions that you can be confident in.
If you don’t know yourself and what you are capable of, it becomes very difficult to feel confident after making a decision. A while back, I got some devastating news that rocked my entire world and I needed to make some very hefty decisions. I called one of my trusted advisors, handed this person the remote control for my life, then proceeded to watch my life spiral down even deeper into the abyss. It was during those dreary months that I realized that nobody can ever know me the way I know myself; therefore, nobody can ever make a decision on my behalf that is better than one I can make on my own. I believe the same to be true for you.
It is great to listen to advice but it is very foolish to treat a piece of advice as though it were a command from God. The bottom line is this: know yourself so that when you make a decision, you can stand solidly behind it 100%. It might seem like a drain on your time to slow down and understand the essence of who you are but where are you rushing to? The only finish line in life is death. Don’t try to outsource sound judgment—exercise it instead. Until next time, stay motivated!
