I have heard it said that, “If you want to become a millionaire, you need to talk to a billionaire, because he has been where you want to go.” Very few of us are really willing to blindly go somewhere and just accept things as they come. We all need to feel a sense of security in what we do, we don’t want to make a mistake if we don’t have to. We usually test the water with our toes first rather than diving in and testing it with our heads. Getting information from others who have experienced similar paths are a good resource to help us gauge what we might expect to experience along our journey. There is a saying that, “You never really experience and truly unique problem.” Others have dealt with quite similar situations and many are willing to share what they learned because of it. We need to be able to trust the experiences of other rather than have to experience everything ourselves first hand. That takes way too much time.

I think also that it is important to understand the difference between good advice and good council. Good advice is given when someone has your best interest in hand, your safety, your well-being. Good council is when someone gives you suggestions that will make your journey less troublesome. For example, let’s say I want to be become an author, so I tell my wife that I am going to write a book, here response to me is probably one that is going to question my ability, my knowledge, and my chance of success. She will probably say something like, “What do you know about writing a book/ You have never written a book, you don’t have good grammar, and you can hardly spell. Besides, who would read it?” Now all of this may be steeped in some fact, especially the part about never having written a book, you have to start somewhere. What she is giving me is advice, she is trying to protect me from pain and suffering and from possible disappointment. Now, if I were to seek good council, I would approach a published author, someone who has experience and has been where I am. Someone who has been successful. This person would probably tell me some tips and tricks that will make the process easier for me. He may say, “Wow, what a great idea, everyone has a book in them. My suggestion is to talk to Mr. Jones, a publisher that I have worked with, he will get you off in the right direction, and don’t forget to have someone proofread your material, we don’t all have good grammar.” Now what this person gave me is council, he want to help me succeed and is not so much worried about my well-being and my lack of knowledge.

There is one other thing to consider is “opinions.” Opinions are like belly buttons, everyone has one. Opinions are often given not to support you. Peter Voogd, in his book 6 Month to 6 Figures, says to “Take Very Few Opinions.” Opinions are often given by people who are not successful in their pursuits. You wouldn’t take financial advice from a homeless person, or marital advice from a divorcee, or weight management advice from an overweight person. These people are giving you their opinions and they are entitled to them, you do not have to believe them, and most of the time it is in your best interest not to take their opinions.