Stop listening to ‘advice’
Luke Janssen
Because almost nobody knows what they are talking about.
Watch this video from John Cleese. He talks about all his greatest work being rejected by the experts. The only reason Life of Brian was made was because George Harrison wanted to see it and so gave them the money when nobody else would. Bohemian Rhapsody would not have been created if Queen listened to advice from the experts. There are many examples, but there will soon be fewer as data and AI and accountants choose which music and films will be popular.
I was talking to someone today about a fintech company we are starting, and he said “do you have finance experts to ask about things”, and I said that the last thing that I wanted was advice from bankers when thinking about fintech. Fintech is disrupting banking, so whatever you do don’t talk to bankers! ok you do have to talk to some, but they must be the right ones.
All the advice I got from everyone when was thinking of starting Tigerspike was not to do it. Why give up a perfectly good job at KPMG?! etc… and then when I started Tigerspike I then got a lot of advice from people who said “you should do this or that”. By some dumb luck I ignored all of this advice (probably because I was an egomaniacal 27 year old) and we got a successful outcome.
My job at Silkstone Partners is to find amazing women and, in conjunction with Hatch Bali, invest in the companies that we help them start. One thing that can be frustrating which happens more with women (than egomaniacal 27 year olds) is the question of advice, and how much to seek and listen to.
My advice on this is clear:
DO NOT TAKE ANY ADVICE FROM ANYONE
Because you get too much of it from people who have no idea what they are talking about (see John Cleese video).
If you seek advice (and you shouldn’t) make sure you get it from:
Someone who has more experience than you doing exactly what you are doing now. If you are starting up a hotel in Myanmar, then talk to people who have set up Hotels in Myanmar. If you are starting an online flower business, then talk to someone who has already started an online flower business). Caveat: you will maybe get entrenched traditional thinking, but you can deal with that. But thats way better than taking irrelevant advice.
The person giving advice must have something to lose if you follow their advice and it doesn’t work out. i.e. they have skin in the game. If not then don’t take it. For example “I think you should expand your potato peeling business into Ireland” (ignore this advice). “I think you should expand your potato peeling business into Ireland because I have a carrot peeling business that I launched in Ireland and it is doing really well; and I’d like to invest $100k in your company to help with the Ireland expansion (take this advice).
To be truly creative (which is what everyone’s goal should be) you have to trust yourself / your group of co-founders / people who have skin in your game; you can’t ask other people for advice.
What I have found also is that men seem to really enjoy giving advice to women who are starting businesses. How altruistic of them!
Just ignore it.