Be Careful Who You Take Advice From

Let’s talk about something that applies to everyone - not just in business, not just in property, but in life.

Be careful who you take advice from.

Sounds simple, but it’s one of those things that can quietly shape your entire direction, whether you realise it or not.

When you take advice from someone, you’re not just hearing their opinion. You’re picking up their mindset, their energy, their experience, and more often than not, their results. If you listen to someone long enough, you’ll probably end up thinking and moving like them.

So before you take anything on board, ask yourself one thing:

Would I trade places with this person?

Are they where you want to be? Are they doing things you want to be doing? Do they have something in that area of life that you’d love to have too?

If not, then be careful.

On a Personal Level

Let’s clear this up first. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with speaking to people who have no interest in business. Not everyone’s built to run one, or wants to, or needs to. Some people will stay in a nine to five their entire life, and if they’re happy doing that - fair play. That’s a win.

You can still be around people like that. Be kind. Be decent. Have a laugh. But when it comes to taking advice, especially life-shaping advice, that’s when you’ve got to stop and think.

Just because someone has an opinion doesn’t mean it’s valid for where you’re going. And just because you respect them as a person doesn’t mean their advice transfers to every area.

If someone’s been married for 25 years and still loves their partner to bits, of course take relationship advice from them. That’s the kind of result you’d want, right?

But that same person might be playing it ultra safe when it comes to business or money, and if that’s not what you want for your own life, then their input might not be helpful when you’re weighing up a big decision, or small decision for that matter.

It all depends on what advice you’re taking, and from who. Do you look up to what they’ve achieved in that area? Would you trade places with them in that specific part of life? If yes, take the advice. If not, bin it.

And just to be real - you don’t need to cut everyone off. You don’t need to go ghost mode and burn bridges. But me personally, I’m very, very, very selective about who I give my energy to and spend time with.

If someone’s main focus in life is what their plans are for the weekend, or what night they’re next getting drunk next, and the conversation is just surface level nonsense every time, then I limit my time with them. Even if they’re good friends.

Time is too valuable. Energy is too valuable. And the wrong environment can slow you down without you even noticing.

When It Comes to Business

This is where it gets critical.

If you’re trying to build something different, grow a business, or step away from the path most people take - then the people you take advice from matter even more.

You’ll face big decisions. You’ll have lots of uncertainty. And you’ll be tempted to ask for second opinions. But unless the person you’re speaking to has actually done what you’re trying to do, then their advice is worth dog-shit.

They might love you, but they don’t get it. They don’t see what you see. So when you say something like “I’m thinking of starting this thing,” or “I’m planning to invest in this,” and they hit back with “That sounds risky,” or “Is that even legal?” - it’s not because they’re right. It’s because they do not understand it.

Take advice from people who are five steps ahead. People who’ve made the mistakes and taken the risks and can tell you what they learned.

And watch out for one more thing.

A Quick Word On Guru’s Selling A Course

Being in property, you see this absolutely everywhere. There’s a whole crowd out there selling the dream. Pushing courses, selling mentorships, hyping things up way beyond what’s real.

There’s nothing wrong with property training or online courses - if it’s coming from someone who’s actually doing the thing. Someone who’s in the trenches, applying the strategy in real time, and just sharing what works.

But when someone’s clearly making more money from selling the course than from the actual strategy they’re teaching, that’s a massive red flag. If they’re putting more time and energy into signing people up than they are into running the business they claim to be an expert in, then what are you really learning?

The goal should be to learn from someone who’s actively doing what they teach. Where the teaching side is just a small part of what they do - not their entire business model.

That’s who you should invest your money in to learn.

A True Story

I remember one summer when I was 19, working at my first ever sales role which was at SCS, the sofa and carpets shop with the terrible TV adverts. That weekend I’d been on my first ever property course. Learned all about the rent to rent serviced accommodation model. Rent a property from a landlord, get permission to sublet it on Airbnb and other platforms, pay the bills, and keep the profit. It sounded awesome (FYI, it is awesome and still doing it today lol)

I was buzzing. Inspired. Genuinely excited and proper fired up to give it a go.

I told a colleague about it at work on the Monday, and he literally laughed in my face and said it would never work.

This isn’t one of those cheesy and fake motivational stories. This genuinely happened. I remember feeling gutted and depressed for the rest of the day. The doubt kicked in, and I started believing him. And he’d never even heard of it before.

Fast forward two years of applying that business model and seeing some success with it - I swear on my life - that same colleague messaged me asking where he could learn more about it.

Swear to God that is a true story. How funny is that?

So yeah, tell people what you’re doing. Share your goals. Be proud of the work you’re putting in. But just be ready for some of them to doubt you or not get it.

And remember, support almost always comes from people ahead of you. Criticism usually comes from the people who haven’t done a thing and have given up hope themselves on achieving more and having more.

(A pic of me at ScS Milton Keynes at 19)

So next time someone tries to put you off or shoot your idea down, just ask yourself one last thing:

Would I swap places with them?

If not, then why the hell would you listen to them?

Ethan out

P.S. Well done for having the balls to think bigger and wanting more than what the broken system of today’s world offers us. Keep after it.