Don’t Listen to Every Piece of Advice You Hear

I spent the last week on vacation with my family and some awesome friends.

2 days in Vegas, 3 days in Utah and we detoured on our way to Vegas airport and visited the Grand Canyon.

As a kid growing up in England the Grand Canyon was something I always admired for its sheer size. Visiting it was something I would never have thought possible!

I’m not afraid of heights but even my legs turned to jelly whenever I got within 20 feet of a sudden drop.

I have shared some pictures of the scenery at the end of this e-mail.

This was a totally different vacation for us as we had never gone on a hiking trip before.

I had also promised myself that I would not do any work whilst we were away. I was going to totally immerse myself with the vacation and not do website tweaks, e-mails, content generation etc etc.

I also succeeded so wahoo me!

Reflections to not act on everything you hear

I had read from others that if you go on a vacation and spend some time away from your business that you will come back refreshed and full of new ideas and epiphanies that you cannot wait to dive into.

I actually didn’t find that at all!

Whilst I didn’t do any work I did spend some time thinking and I did miss working and writing.

I didn’t come away with new ideas, which concerned me at first. If I couldn’t come up with new ideas like others said I would does that mean I don’t know what I am doing?? Will I run out of ideas? Should I just stop now?

After questioning myself for a bit I came to the realization that it actually meant I am happy with the direction I am going in. I don’t need new ideas, I just need to stay on the path I am on, keep going and ignore other shiny new objects, and the fly that keeps attacking me as I write this!

It also shows the importance to me of listening to others but making your own decisions. People give advice all the time, but it can also be conflicting with other things you hear. But what works for one doesn’t work for all, and you need to have the clarity in your vision, who you are, and which direction you are heading, to know whether that advice works for you or not.

I am always well aware of that when I write and when I coach clients.

My job is not to tell you what to do, or do it for you.

My job is to ask you questions and help you figure out which path you want to be on and ask you questions to help you navigate your life.

We are all different and what one person loves another cannot stand and another is indifferent.

It’s also important to look for and be curious about any signs you see and feel. Whilst I missed writing I did not miss going on social media.

Yet another sign that to get my message to people I need to think of a different way. Social media often leaves me bored, distracted and just not fulfilled.

What did get reinforced for me though is just how amazing this world is, and how a 3 hour flight from me, the same country can look and feel so different.

– Breath taking scenery

– Amazing hikes that leave the parents of young kids with different colored underwear afterwards. My 5 year old especially loved it, my wife especially was a nervous wreck the entire time.

– The chance to unwind

– Enjoy time away

– Being fully present with my family and not being mentally distracted by other things.

Enjoy what’s around you and take the time to slow down.

Cheering you on.

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This post was previously published on Dan Quinlan’s blog and is republished on Medium.

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