One of my posts with this opening comment attracted more than average attention, perhaps because it rings true with many. It was prompted by the following ironic scenario.
I was referred to talk to a couple of entrepreneurial young guys, eager to start a business together. They were full of enthusiasm, which is always great to see. They had identified the ideal unit for their business and wanted my advice and guidance on negotiating the terms of the lease with the agent acting for the landlord.
They had already identified the building, however, as their story unfolded and as they relayed their business model to me, there was a flaw in the plan they were telling me. It was so clear that I could not allow the conversation to go forward without explaining the basis and context of my concern to them.
Thankfully, after their initial surprise, they could see exactly what I was saying and why. They understood my concern. Without the issue resolved, it was doubtful they would succeed in their plan. My view was that it wouldn’t be worth the time and cost to overcome.
I suggested how they could ‘bottom out’ the matter and make a judgement about whether the object of my concern was truly fatal to their strategy.
The point of the story is this: whilst it had already been recognised by others that there may be an issue, they had been told by more than one person, “No, that won’t be a problem at all!”, which, in their enthusiasm, they had willingly accepted. Where had all that advice been given? Well, in the pub of course and clearly by people who lacked a professional understanding of the issues and the experience to advise!
The irony that struck me as I was explaining the reality and magnitude of the challenge, that we too were sitting in a pub. Hence the conclusion of the tale is, you CAN trust advice from the bloke at the pub if that bloke happens to have over 35 years’ experience doing exactly what you’ve asked about!
