Never Take Advice...

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  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    I think rather than categorically denouncing or taking as gospel the advice of people based on your assessment of how they're "doing," we should maybe just learn to read and evaluate a person's usefulness a little better. For example, in America's finest prisons, there are a lot of people with a lot of great advice to offer on a wide range of topics.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    really cause my son isn't doing as well as me but if I want advice on welding I go to him...he is a welder

    I'm pretty sure he's doing better than you at welding, so you should take his advice as welding.

    There's an important difference between taking advice from people who are where you want to be versus taking advice from people who are farther down the same path as you.

    I wouldn't take fitness or diet advice from an NFL linebacker. Ray Lewis has been incredibly fit his entire life. He has always eaten like a horse and always had muscles and always been a general badass. His advice is more or less useless to me. He hasn't been on my path.

    I will take advice from someone who has gone from being a fat sedentary 25 year old and turned themselves into a lean 32 year old machine. I will take advice from someone who has battled the same injuries I have and come out better than I am right now.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    Lets see... would i take fitness advice from Arnold Schwarzenegger despite that today he looks terrible? Yes

    Does he? I just saw him on a Bud Light commercial looking pretty jacked. There's that one picture of him floating around looking all saggy and flabby, but that was after some sort of heart surgery.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
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    ...from someone who's not doing better than you.


    That imo is wrong. I could give advise based on my specific education, life experience, nutritional experience, 15 years of weight lifting, common sense etc to someone who is 30 years younger than I ( because it's based on science and basic principles of weight loss for example ) and maybe therefore has better or faster success than I do being in my mid 60's.
    If the advise given to me makes sense ( again based on science, common sense and also logic ) I will always at least check it out, even if the person is less successful than I, because success has many components not just " doing better " in the pounds lost.
    There are many out there who should refrain from giving advise, but I would never categorically discount someone because they have " 0" on their ticker.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    A line from Rippetoe's Starting Strength sticks out. He essentially says that the best trainers are mediocre athletes who tried like hell to get better. Naturally gifted athletes make terrible trainers because they don't understand the struggle and learning process.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    A line from Rippetoe's Starting Strength sticks out. He essentially says that the best trainers are mediocre athletes who tried like hell to get better. Naturally gifted athletes make terrible trainers because they don't understand the struggle and learning process.

    That's a good point. To paraphrase the old saying, being born on third base doesn't mean you're an expert on hitting a triple.
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
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    A line from Rippetoe's Starting Strength sticks out. He essentially says that the best trainers are mediocre athletes who tried like hell to get better. Naturally gifted athletes make terrible trainers because they don't understand the struggle and learning process.

    The logic here is blowing my mind.
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
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    Strongly disagree.

    Circumstances apply.
  • EHisCDN
    EHisCDN Posts: 480 Member
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    I could get philosophical and ask how you define someone who is more successful but I won't.

    I think it's beneficial to listen to advice/gather information from a variety of sources. Each will have their pros and cons, and their own strengths and weaknesses. It's my job to decide which pieces of advice I think are best and make a decision on that. I've always thought the more information you have the better - you just have to keep in mind that not all information you get will be the best or most accurate information
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    hmmm....but so many people are giving advice on this forum...
  • _Resolve_
    _Resolve_ Posts: 735 Member
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    Define "better"
  • RunsOnEspresso
    RunsOnEspresso Posts: 3,218 Member
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    A line from Rippetoe's Starting Strength sticks out. He essentially says that the best trainers are mediocre athletes who tried like hell to get better. Naturally gifted athletes make terrible trainers because they don't understand the struggle and learning process.

    Reminds me of: Those who can, do; those who can't, teach. I said this many times during Gretzky's tenure as an NHL coach. Greatest player of the game yet probably the worst coach.

    Take everything with a grain of salt. We don't know everything about the person giving advice to judge whether they are better than us or not.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    really cause my son isn't doing as well as me but if I want advice on welding I go to him...he is a welder

    I'm pretty sure he's doing better than you at welding, so you should take his advice as welding.

    There's an important difference between taking advice from people who are where you want to be versus taking advice from people who are farther down the same path as you.

    I wouldn't take fitness or diet advice from an NFL linebacker. Ray Lewis has been incredibly fit his entire life. He has always eaten like a horse and always had muscles and always been a general badass. His advice is more or less useless to me. He hasn't been on my path.

    I will take advice from someone who has gone from being a fat sedentary 25 year old and turned themselves into a lean 32 year old machine. I will take advice from someone who has battled the same injuries I have and come out better than I am right now.

    but that's my point..overall he isn't doing better than me...Yes he is a good welder...and yes I would take his advice on it and have...(he helped build my squat rack) but that's why I said the OP's statement isn't as cut and dry as it appears.

    As with the above I know a woman who has lost the same 10lbs for 10 years ah hello yo yo...will I go to her for weight loss advice as she is fit and healthy about 18% BF, has quit smoking etc...hell no...she is doing better than me at losing the weight and getting in shape but loves Dr Oz, does cleanses, raspberry keatones, green coffee bean extract etc...

    So even saying people who are doing better means nothing for getting advice...and it being valid...

    It's about listening to the advice, evaluating it with your own thoughts and research and then applying any part or all of what you were advised...for example I like the advice to eat what I want in moderation...but I don't like the advice of eliminate fat from my diet or carbs blah blah blah...I don't even evaluate the whole eliminate stuff cause I don't want to...hence human nature...we will do what we want in the end good/bad advice be damned.
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    This could be me misinterpreting English words (as my third language), but "advice" always sounds "superior"...You are giving advice, to me that sounds that you know better than I do...

    Please don't bash me...:flowerforyou:
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    This could be me misinterpreting English words (as my third language), but "advice" always sounds "superior"...You are giving advice, to me that sounds that you know better than I do...

    Please don't bash me...:flowerforyou:

    I agree...esp if that aforementioned advice is unsolicited...sometimes even solicited advice is met with that feeling on these forums...:laugh:
  • redambition
    redambition Posts: 39 Member
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    I think that's really shortsighted.

    A single person might have a wealth of knowledge about relationships. Just because they happen to be single doesn't make that experience and knowledge void. A lot of my married friends gave me bad advice when I was single.

    Someone who is currently out of shape may well be a great source of advice for fitness or nutrition. Before my previous trainer retired, there were two periods where he was out of shape - once because of injury (not sustained in his training) and once because he took a few months off to go on his first holiday in 5 years. Neither time invalidated his experience and knowledge of training.

    By this theory we should listen to all those celebrity weight-loss tips. Because we all know how thin celebs are!

    Rather than focus on if the advice giver is doing better than you, focus on the advice. Is it sensible? Does it sound sustainable? Could you implement it without drastically changing your enjoyment and quality of life? If it is a big change, do you feel positive or apprehensive about it? Does it have a basis in proven techniques or science? All these things can help you decide if the advice is actually worthwhile.
  • mschicagocubs
    mschicagocubs Posts: 774 Member
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    Some people that have lost 100 lbs give me advice that in the end just isnt for me or when I researched it I didnt like what I read.

    Some people who have lost 20 have given me advice that seems to be working for me.

    & Vice Versa.

    Opinions are opinions for a reason.
  • minizebu
    minizebu Posts: 2,716 Member
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    This whole thread has disintegrated into a parsing of words, which is probably appropriate, as the original statement by the O.P. and even his subsequent clarifications of his original statement were flawed in one way or another.

    However, as a personal observation of my own attitudes and behaviors, past and present, I can say that it is difficult for me to accept advice from a person whom I do not respect. Whether or not I respect a certain person may, or may not, have anything to do with that person's particular qualifications to give advice with regard to a particular subject. Respect is a subjective attitude. Some people command my respect, and others do not. (Note: In using the term "respect" I am referring to my internal feelings about a person, not whether or not I am polite and respectful in my behavior toward that person.)

    An example: There was a child care worker at one of my children's daycare centers. Did this person have far more experience than I did at dealing with child development issues? Yes. Did this person have more children than I did and therefore more experience as a parent? Yes. Did this person earn my respect in regard to all things child-care and parenting related? No. Because of a particular incident that had occurred at the daycare, this person lost my respect. I could not accept advice from this person, because I did not respect her. She was nice enough and we exchanged cordial chit chat, but I did not respect her as an authority from whom I would seek expertise, despite of her qualifications to give it.

    I think that is human nature.

    I also think that perhaps the O.P.'s central theme is that he does not respect advice from folks who are not out-doing him in whatever endeavor he seeks advice for.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    really cause my son isn't doing as well as me but if I want advice on welding I go to him...he is a welder

    I'm pretty sure he's doing better than you at welding, so you should take his advice as welding.

    There's an important difference between taking advice from people who are where you want to be versus taking advice from people who are farther down the same path as you.

    I wouldn't take fitness or diet advice from an NFL linebacker. Ray Lewis has been incredibly fit his entire life. He has always eaten like a horse and always had muscles and always been a general badass. His advice is more or less useless to me. He hasn't been on my path.

    I will take advice from someone who has gone from being a fat sedentary 25 year old and turned themselves into a lean 32 year old machine. I will take advice from someone who has battled the same injuries I have and come out better than I am right now.

    but that's my point..overall he isn't doing better than me...Yes he is a good welder...and yes I would take his advice on it and have...(he helped build my squat rack) but that's why I said the OP's statement isn't as cut and dry as it appears.

    As with the above I know a woman who has lost the same 10lbs for 10 years ah hello yo yo...will I go to her for weight loss advice as she is fit and healthy about 18% BF, has quit smoking etc...hell no...she is doing better than me at losing the weight and getting in shape but loves Dr Oz, does cleanses, raspberry keatones, green coffee bean extract etc...

    So even saying people who are doing better means nothing for getting advice...and it being valid...

    It's about listening to the advice, evaluating it with your own thoughts and research and then applying any part or all of what you were advised...for example I like the advice to eat what I want in moderation...but I don't like the advice of eliminate fat from my diet or carbs blah blah blah...I don't even evaluate the whole eliminate stuff cause I don't want to...hence human nature...we will do what we want in the end good/bad advice be damned.

    In pretty sure that "doing better than you" meant "at the task in question."
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    Some people that have lost 100 lbs give me advice that in the end just isnt for me or when I researched it I didnt like what I read.

    Some people who have lost 20 have given me advice that seems to be working for me.

    & Vice Versa.

    Opinions are opinions for a reason.

    This^^^

    I also think different goals call for different strategy/action plan. What works for other's goal/target might not work for you because of that...

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