Ignore Advice

If you want to thrive and innovate, ignore all advice from others.

A thought:

When people give us "advice" (especially unsolicited advice), are they really trying to "help" us in an altruistic sense? Or are they trying to prop up their own ego, or do they feel threatened by you?


In a graduation speech in Beirut, Nassim Taleb gave this advice:

"If I can give any ‘advice’, it is to be more stubborn and ignore others more."

Im starting to believe in this more and more.

Apparently ancient Greek gods were seen as "inflexible, hard, and infinitely stubborn". Why is it that we’re taught in modern society to be "open minded", flexible, and to ‘listen’ to others?

This is my theory:

Everyone else thinks that they have the ultimate truth, and they’re trying to superimpose their own moral code of ethics upon you.

They’re not really trying to "help" you. They see what you’re doing or saying, and they don’t like it, because it conflicts with their personal ego and belief system.

So I have this idea:

What if we simply ignored all the ‘advice’ that give us. Or better yet, don’t even ask anybody else for advice?

Consider, whenever you do anything “against the grain” in society, everyone considers you’re “crazy”. Why? Because you’re unpredictable, and you’re different from the “average” or “normal” person. People who are different are seen as dangerous, and a threat.

But all great innovators and individuals in history and society have been seen as “crazy”, “erratic”, and sometimes “insane”. They’re only labeled that way, because generic people cannot understand that there are “atypical” people who are truly unique, great, and valuable.

So as a thought, some practical ideas:

  1. Try going a month without asking anyone for their “opinion” or “feedback”. Trust yourself and your own gut.
  2. Distance yourself from people who give you unsolicited advice, and people who try to control your behavior.
  3. When others give you “advice”, psycho-analyze them. Really think, “Why are they saying that? What do they really mean to say? And how is what they’re saying benefitting them?”

Or in short,

Listen less to others, listen more to yourself.

Be audacious, brazen, bold, and courageous. You only got one life to live; live it according to your own accord.

ERIC