Sometimes, people get in my ear. Not literally, but metaphorically. And under the guise of advice, they’ll say some interesting things.

Here is something I’ve heard a few times:

“Wow, I’m surprised you joined Dave Ramsey’s team. You could be doing all of this blog and book stuff on your own by now. Why didn’t you just start your own thing?”

Sometimes, when people say that, they mean it as a compliment of sorts. They mean I’ve written a book and have a blog and a Twitter account, and maybe it’s really time to strike out on my own. Sometimes, they mean it as a dig, that I have somehow taken the easy route or safe route or cowardly route by joining someone else’s team instead of going solo.

I’ve been thinking about those comments for a year now, and I think they represent an interesting shift in our culture. On one end of the spectrum is the entrepreneur, who feels called to go it alone. There are so many tools and opportunities right now for launching your own ship. This is an amazing time to be an entrepreneur and, for many people, that is the perfect decision.

Sometimes, along the way though, a sense of impatience and even entitlement gets tangled with our sense of entrepreneurship. We’re so desperate to be the man right away. We’re so eager to chart our own course that we don’t think we need to be led. I can grow my own platform easily with social media. I can get my own following. I’ve been called to do this and nobody in the history of mankind has ever done it like this! Who could possibly give me advice? Being an apprentice would be failure. This is my time!

With that line of thinking, we’ve lost a few things.

We’ve lost the value of seeking wise counsel.

We’ve lost the honor of sitting under someone else’s leadership.

We’ve lost the joy of building something slowly that impacts multiple generations, instead of just our own lives.

It reminds me of friends who bought houses they couldn’t afford. They wanted a home like their parents had. Which is fine, except their parents spent 40 years working toward that house. And when you demand that your first house be like your parent’s fifth house, bad things happen.

Same with being a leader. Same with chasing a dream. Same with finding a dream job.

Why did I decide to work for Dave Ramsey?

Because I want to be led. I want to learn. I want to admit time and time again: “I don’t know how to do this. Will you teach me how?”

I have a new thought now when people tell me, “Wow, I’m surprised you joined Dave Ramsey’s team.”

Now in my head, I think,

“You’re right. He spent 20 years growing a business from 0 people to 300 people and building a radio empire that’s on 500 radio stations with almost 5 million listeners a week. I’ve written a blog and a book. We’re pretty much on the same level at this point. I’m done learning and should probably step out on my own already. What could that guy possibly teach me?”

Be led. Be taught. Be apprenticed.

Learning from those before you is a dying art that just might bring your dream back to life.

Question:
Who is someone you currently seek wise counsel from?