Make Room For The Expert

In the interest of practicing what I preach, I said something out loud this week that I'd never said out loud before. On a call with a business partner in Portugal, I shared a truth that I'd never shared outside of my head or my journals with anyone. As I said it out loud, not only did it sound better than how I'd processed it in my head or written in my journals, but it was said with force and a confidence I didn't truly know I had around what I was saying.

If I'd said it that way in a Pentecostal Church, I'd gotten more than a few Amens and Hallelujahs.

When I finished the call, I thought to myself, "Why did I just share that with him? Why was he the first person to ever hear me say that truth out loud?"

His reaction of excitement and enthusiasm meant more to me than I expected, maybe more to me than the weight of the opinions of those who know me better.

I reflected on it and realized it was because he was "out of town." He is not a part of my inner circle and doesn't really know any of my other friends. I won't run into him at an event or see him in the neighborhood.

His absence from my daily environment created a dynamic with no real-world consequences. Speaking my truth more openly and getting validation from the exotic and less-known party was liberating. It reflected for me a broader, often-cited wisdom: The expert is always from out of town.

Mark Twain said, "An expert is an ordinary fellow from another town."

Will Rogers offered, "An expert is any man fifty miles from his home with a briefcase."

Jesus said, "A prophet is treated with honor everywhere except his hometown."

There seems to be a theme.

There is a tendency to value advice from distant or unique sources over that which is closer and perhaps more familiar. This perception assumes that an outsider brings a special expertise or a fresh perspective that those within our immediate circle cannot offer. However, research led by David Levari from Harvard Business School suggests a more complex picture.

His studies reveal that top performers, often viewed as the quintessential "experts," do not necessarily provide better advice than their less distinguished peers.

Instead, they just tend to offer more advice.

And boy, do we have a lot of advice from these experts out there these days.

And with Black Mirror: Nosedive coming to life right before our eyes, even more credence is given to not just the Expert From Out Of Town, but "they have X amount of followers, they must know what they're talking about!" has also entered the chat.

So let's zoom back out - who is the expert that we should, in fact, trust?

The one who knows the most about the situation and has done the work to see the playing field clearly. The one who has sought advice and feedback, but not relied on others for the answer.

It's you.

It's you living fully into your truth and taking the agency that is yours alone to take.

Do you need help? Yes. Are you the one responsible for asking for help? Yes. Do you have everything you need right now to access the next level of your story? Yes.

You are the expert, the only true expert, on you.

So start learning to trust yourself even more. Start leaning into wisdom that is there in the mirror. Develop a practice of checking in that is a revelatory and true as the hype you might feel from a flight of fancy with the expert from out of town.

The rest of us would like to thank you for that hard work that you are doing.

A better You means a better Us.

Quote That The Expert Loves

“Rather than waste your precious time being stressed over making the right decision, make the decision right.” - Dr. Ellen Langer

CT + NY Friends: Event I Want You To Come To

Are you in Connecticut? Do you live north of NYC? Do you want to ride the train with me from NYC up for the fun?

This is the third annual Taco Tuesday fundraiser for our Culinary Institute and I would love to see you there!

12 different restaurants will be competing with their best tacos and a lot of money will be raised for a great cause! Tickets are still available!

Video That Should Wake Us Up

Skip the click-bait image and title; there is some amazing truth at 5:49

It is a very clear picture of how quickly the world is and will continue to change and a reminder that what we are obsessing about right now, in large part, does not and will not matter when the forces at work come to fruition.

My World View In One Image

Basically, The Fourth Turning Is Here.

Winter is coming. We are not ready.

I'm thinking about the Roman Empire.

Thank you for making it through this week's newsletter. I want to have a conversation with anyone who will listen about anything shared above, and I hope that something caused you to shout out a Pentecostal AMEN, too.

Have a great rest of the week,

Andy