Unusual Advice Source

You can get advice from all sorts of places. Some people ask friends, family or even write their question down for a newspaper personality to answer.  About a month ago, I was with my mother in law and aunt in law at a John Edwards show and received some really good advice. 

For those that are not familiar with John Edwards, he used to be a television medium on the show Crossing Over.  (He speaks with the dead. Or maybe the dead speak with him. I am not 100% sure how this works. I am hoping it isn’t like 6th Sense sort of stuff.) If you were to look him up you would find a bunch of YouTube videos and a South Park episode dedicated to him.

I should probably clarify that this is not the usual source type I would go to for advice. My belief level is closer to Dana Scully than it is to Fox Murder on this. However, I digress.  As I sat there in the crowd of people, hoping that John Edwards focus would not rotate to my corner pocket of the room, I was to pick out some really good advice he was giving to the room full of grief stricken people.  

Here is the advice I was able to take home with me.

1. The best way to defuse a situation with another person on a difference of opinion is to acknowledge the situation and then walk away.  The best phrase to use is, “Oh, that’s interesting.” It acknowledges the opinion but doesn’t agree or disagree with the opinion, thus making the person feel listened to and taking the wind out of their sails. 
2. Just because you ask a question, does not mean you will get the answer you want. To solve any problem, you have to be open to all possible answers, even the answers you don’t want to hear. 
3. It is okay to give yourself time to grieve. Everyone does it in their own way, but the important part is to do it.  It isn’t just people, it can be a change in situation that can shock the senses, and sometimes a person just needs time to digest. Allow yourself to adjust to new situations and people. 

While I might not recommend a medium as a source to answer all of life’s questions, it is important to recognize that when you receive good advice, it doesn’t really matter the source.  I think the key is to be open to new ideas that challenge the current pattern of thinking.   What do you think?