On Advice & Criticism…What do you think?
Advice and criticism are like peas in a pod. One is usually perceived as positive while the other usually perceived as negative yet they both really say the same thing…”you could be doing things better, and this is what you should be doing. If I were you…”. So while there is nothing inherently wrong with giving advice or criticism, what is interesting is that it is hard for people to follow their own affirmations about life. Talk is cheap. Action takes effort. Motives are never really known.
I give advice often and probably criticize just as much, never with malice in mind of course, but I guess it’s just one of those things I do. I question nature and purpose of advice and criticism and how they manifest and become part of our daily lives. Aside from being able to get on my soap box and get my ego stoked what purpose do I have if any when flapping my lips and speaking my mind?
When asking advice, people generally seek the answers they already know. Why do it then? Does it speak to lack of self-confidence and direction. Is it indicative of the fact that 99 percent of people want to be lead by the other 1 percent of the population? or do they just want confirmation of what they know and what they believe. When I criticize is it my lack of control or input to a situation that motivates me?
I have no particular point to this post other than exploring the nature of things and their relation to me. What do you think?
I think the purpose of advice depends on the person and/or the situation.
On one hand, I could see most people asking for advice when they know what the right thing to do would be, but, for whatever reason, would much rather do the wrong thing. It’s as though they’re searching desperately for one person to disagree with the “right thing” so as to justify doing the “wrong thing.” What I find nice about this is that it shows the person in question has some kind of scruples, which is better than the nothingness I tend to find in most people’s consciences.
On the other hand, some people are just generally clueless as to the next steps they should take and are seeking guidance. If not our peers, who else do we have to turn to when we’re questioning things? Also, someone may be able to provide a perspective that you may not have thought of before due to different life experiences or outlooks.
Comment by annie lou — March 21, 2007 @ 7:00 pm