The case for being uncoachable

When to say no to Google Maps, experts, advice, and everyone else

Google Maps says turn left. I'm turning right.

It's 6:47 pm on a Tuesday, fifteen minutes from home. My phone, armed with real-time traffic data, brilliant algorithms, and the collective wisdom of millions, is practically begging me to take the highway.

"No thanks," I say, like it's offering me an extended warranty.

Sure, ignoring Google occasionally lands me behind a broken-down bus for three hours (true story). But I persist, trusting my instinct over algorithmic authority.

Sometimes, especially in my home town of Brisbane, I do beat the ETA when I decline directions and forge my own path.

Do you do this, too? Do you defer to trusting your own judgment, even when the "experts" disagree?

I'm starting to think that's a skill we all need to cultivate.

The more advice you get, the less you trust yourself

Regular readers know I'm training for a trek in Nepal. When I share this conversationally on my travels, the advice comes in thick and fast:

• "You have to pack these socks."

• "Make sure you do this specific training."

• "My second cousin's boyfriend drank this type of electrolyte and you should, too..."

It's all well-intentioned. It's also completely overwhelming.

I was discussing this with Matt Stewart from Experience Not Felt Possible, who's hosting the trip, when he said something that made me pay attention:

"Five people could give you five different ways to get up the mountain, and each of those ways could actually achieve the same outcome. The method you choose is the one that aligns with you."

Boom.

The goal isn't to find the one "correct" path. It's to find your path.

Here's the problem: when people we know, like, and trust give us conflicting advice, it rattles us.

We start second-guessing ourselves. The noise is external, but the conflict is internal, it's a battle between trusting others and trusting yourself.

Question: Are you searching for the "right" answer, or the answer that's right for you?

Just because you can… doesn’t mean you should

My recent Talk the Walk live-stream with Alan Weiss was on How to make the right decision every time.

He told me about his client, a consultant, who would ask prospects, "Can I help them?" The trouble is, the answer was almost always yes.

This simple question led her into bad deals with difficult clients because she focused on her capability, not the fit.

Alan asks a different question: "What's in it for me?"

You might think that sounds selfish. It's not. It's brilliantly strategic. It forces you to ask:

• Will I learn from this?

• Will I grow?

• Will I enjoy the work?

• Does this get me closer to my real goals?

This is such a great filter question!

It's about running every piece of advice and every opportunity through this lens: Does this path, this project, this "expert" opinion actually serve what I'm trying to build here?

And it’s not just for consultants.

Steve Jobs lived by this filter. When developing the original Macintosh, Jobs famously ignored market research and focus groups. Why? He trusted his taste. His gut. His team’s conviction.

“We weren’t going to go out and do market research. We just wanted to build the best thing we could build.”

That maverick approach? It paid off in groundbreaking innovations. The kind that changed how we interact with tech, forever.

Just because others say you could do something (or should do something) doesn’t mean it fits your filter. Run it through your metrics.

Btw, join us for our next Talk the Walk livestream. Our topic is How to ignore feedback. It's on Friday 15 Aug 7am AEST (that's Thursday 14 Aug 5pm ET for my US friends). Click here to RSVP on LinkedIn.

Question: Are you asking "Can I?" when you should be asking "Should I?"

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Psst…I want to run the coolest consultant event ever

I've been sitting on this idea of hosting a 2-day conference for solo consultants next year (placeholder name: Con Con... as in the Consultants Convention).

Should I do this? LMK by completing the Con Con Curiosity Check.

Anyway…

This might be a bright shiny object, but it would be fun!

This idea has been bouncing around, doing absolutely nothing except occasionally making me think, "Hmm, that could be something."

First step: Work in public and socialise the idea. Yesterday, I shared it on LinkedIn (there’s been a great response!) and now I’m bringing it to your attention right now.

Yay, the idea is out there!

Sometimes the most uncoachable thing you can do is coach yourself into action.

And honestly? I'm excited about this.

A 2-day conference for solo consultants with Cancun vibes? Yes please.

The consulting world needs more opportunities to connect, learn, and elevate the profession, mixed in with a dash of tropical courage.

Question: What idea have you been sitting on that deserves to see daylight?

A final note

Being proudly uncoachable is about confidently curating what advice gets through your filter.

It's about:

• Politely declining well-intentioned but off-target suggestions

• Trusting your internal GPS, even when Google (and everyone else) begs you to reconsider

• Asking sharper questions ("What's in it for me?") and being ruthless about your personal metrics

• Hitting send on that wild, bold idea before your courage evaporates

Just maybe keep an escape plan handy, in case of that broken-down bus scenario.

What advice have you recently declined? What idea are you ready to finally release into the wild?

Let me know in the comments.

🌴

Leanne "You can go your own way" Hughes

P.S. Seriously, if "Con Con"sounds like an intriguing gathering to you, I'd love some "hard data" to either confirm (or challenge) my gut instinct. Help me out by completing this quick Con Con Curiosity Check.