This week during a coffee meeting while I was in Austin, a friend stopped by on his way back from Whole Foods carrying an extremely large and decadent piece of chocolate cake and something unidentifiable in a to-go box. I jokingly asked if it was a salad to balance out the brick of sugar he was about to eat. “No,” he replied, “It’s tacos and I had to wait forever for them.” My curiosity was peeked, why the long wait for tacos? He explained to me that there was one girl and one twenty something guy working the taco counter and he chose to wait until the guy taco barista was up before he ordered. More curiosity, I had to know why! “Well,” he said, “I figure the person making the taco is more likely to make it the way they’d want to eat it. From the girl, I’d get a neat and tidy taco with lots of lettuce. But if the guy makes it, he’ll make it like a guy and shove in as much meat and cheese as he can possibly fit and THAT’S the kind of taco I want to eat.”

Okay now is your curiosity peeked? Why am I UPdating you about taco’s? Well because this short story is a great metaphor for the most satisfying way to “order up” advice. I invite you to consider whose “counter” you are stepping up to the next time you are seeking feedback. Is that person living the kind of life you want to live? Have they had the kind of experiences that would qualify for first-hand advice in your situation? Are they like-minded in their values and priorities in life?

Just because we share DNA or a long history with someone or they play some kind of authority figure in our life, does not necessarily qualify them to dish out the advice we really out to consume. Because we all can be overly influenced by other people’s opinions, when seeking out advice we are best served by individuals who have the experience, values, and results that are most in alignment with what we want to create. So the next time you find yourself craving some guidance, satiate yourself by going only to those who make the kind of taco you’d want to eat.

Fondly,
Christine

“If I wanted to become a failure, I would seek advice from men who have never succeeded. If I wanted to succeed in all things, I would look around me for those who are succeeding, and do as they have done.”
– Joseph Marshall Wade
“As you embark out into the unknown on the Journey of your Dreams choose wisely your traveling mates. Your team and who you surround yourself with is one of the most important decisions you can make and a great influence on whether you will complete the journey successfully.”
– Mastin Kipp