We say we want advice.
What we really want is someone to nod along. To affirm the path we’ve already chosen. To tell us we’re brilliant for thinking exactly what we’re already thinking.
That’s not advice. That’s a mirror with a voice.
Real guidance challenges us. It shows us the assumptions we’re making that we can’t see ourselves. It asks uncomfortable questions. It suggests we might be wrong about the thing we’re most certain about.
If you surround yourself with people whose primary job is agreement, you’ve hired a fan club, not advisors. And fan clubs don’t help us scale. They don’t push us toward the hard decisions that create value. They certainly don’t prepare us for the truth we’ll face in the market.
We measure growth by how much we’ve changed, not by how many people confirmed we were right all along.
The executives who scale aren’t the ones seeking validation. They’re the ones willing to hear “you’re missing something” and lean in instead of defend.
Even a dog will challenge you sometimes. They’ll refuse to come when called if you’re being unreasonable.
Are your advisors doing at least that much?
