Accepting help from advisors is a wise practice for a person to follow. None of us see ourselves as we truly are. Oftentimes we are shocked to hear our voice on a recording, and not recognizing it at all will ask, “Do I really sound like that?” The voice we have heard day after day is muffled because we hear it from the inside of our body. Just like the artist who paints a painting and, when someone offers a different viewpoint, is startled because he/she never viewed the painting that way. The artist tends to see what he wants to see in the image…not necessarily what is actually there.
The wisdom sayings in the book of Proverbs from the Bible teach us to listen to wise counsel and to seek wisdom when it can be found. If we have trusted, honest, and good friends, we can ask them “How do you see me?” They will provide feedback that may lead us to some changes in the way we do things, or they may confirm that we are someone whom they trust and respect because of the way we do things.
The most important rule is to choose which advisors we shall listen to when advice is given to us. Thus, “choose your friends wisely,” is a long-respected piece of advice. Everyone has an opinion, and many are more than willing to give theirs to anyone who will listen. Then, when we are given advice, we need to think on it and mull it over and over in our mind to see what bits of wisdom we can garner from it.
If we remember that life is a four-sided affair: “Man must play, work, love, and worship to get the most out of life,” (Sir Wilfred Grenfell) we will realize that different kinds of advisors are necessary for each part of life. Someone once said, “The ultimate in wisdom is to live in the present, plan for the future, and profit from the past.” Good advisors can certainly help us with that. The experiences of others can provide a bridge over some of life’s nastiest swamps!
A great leader will want to surround himself with great advisors. As Boone Pickens said, “Leadership is taking risks.” A manager leads people, but “he endeavors to make right decisions while a leader sometimes makes questionable decisions and then makes them right.” (J.W. McLean) So, someone who desires to become a leader must surround himself with advisors of the highest excellence. But in today’s world, that advisor may be only a keyboard stroke or internet address away.
- Kay