Look for Trends when Getting Advice

As a small business owner I’ve had many many discussions with colleagues about my products and services.  Throughout these discussions I have gleaned some outstanding pieces of advice  about things I should be focusing on and ideas that I should be pursuing.  I also have been on the receiving end of some pretty random ideas which may have had some merit in the eyes of the beholder but just didn't seem to fit well with the direction that I want to take the business.  One colleague of mine got pretty peeved with me because I wasn't executing upon his advice.  The truth is, his advice just didn't align with the other advice I was getting and didn't fit well with the direction that I want to go.  I stuck with my spider-senses and didn't execute upon his advice.

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As a leader it is imperative that you solicit advice from credible colleagues, mentors, employees, customers or suppliers to help you set direction and execute.  What is not imperative, though, is that you implement every piece of advice you receive.  You need to retain control and ultimate decision authority over what advice you choose to implement and what advice you choose to ignore.  I've seen some leaders blindly execute on some faulty advice and then when things went sour blame things on the person that gave him or her the advice.  Acting upon someone's advice is not an opportunity to shift blame or allow yourself a "get out of jail free card" when the advice turns out to be ill-advised. 

Get multiple opinions, test questionable advice with other colleagues, then make the best decision based upon the feedback trends.  At the end of the day, it is still you that is accountable for execution regardless of the advice and counsel you receive. 

Lonnie Pacelli
Keynote Speaker | Board Director | Autism Advocate | Author | Project Management Expert | Microsoft/Accenture Veteran 
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