Let's say one wants to go from point X to point Y.
Person A seems to know the route from X to Y. Or he is confident of figuring it out by himself using resources like a compass, a physical map, or Google Maps. He believes that the whole process of figuring out the route is more interesting and doesn't mind spending his time/effort on this process.
Person B prefers to be handheld by someone who is an expert in this route. He doesn't want to struggle independently and would rather rely on the expert's guidance. He believes that reaching point Y is the goal and if someone can assure to take us there, it is okay to take their help in exchange for a fee.
The perspectives and experiences gathered by these two persons will be quite different in their respective journeys. One cannot judge their choices - be it a self-relying or an expert-relying approach.
One cannot judge the "need" of an expert who offers such services for a fee as there are takers for such experts' guidance.
As long as the expert delivers on the promise made to Person B in reaching the destination, it is all fair and good.
In some cases, the expert promises Person B to take him to destination Y. In the end, Person B realizes he is nowhere close to Y and has ended up at a distant point Z. It is now up to Person B to unlearn the route, trace back his steps, and figure out an alternate route, leading to more distress and uncertainty. The expert ends up fooling more such people and making huge profits in this bargain.
What does the route X=>Y entail? What is this journey for? Is it
- to learn a new skill,
- to learn a new subject,
- to get a new perspective,
- to pursue a goal,
- to accomplish something,
- to gain knowledge,
- to identify our areas of improvement,
- to work on our areas of improvement,
- to grow in our material/spiritual pursuit?
As long as the journey and the end goal are concrete and can be articulated clearly, it is easier to find the right expert to help us on this path. For eg, if my X=>Y journey is to learn swimming in 3 months, I would seek the service of a swimming coach who has the experience and expertise. We would work out a plan together to achieve this goal.
Many times, we don't have the clarity in us about our journey and end goal. Without that clarity, if we try to seek an expert, there are high chances we might end up falling into the trap of self-proclaimed, fake gurus.
Are our goals truly ours?
Are our goals decided due to peer pressure?
Why do we even want to move from point X to point Y?
What's missing in point X?
What do we expect to gain at point Y?
What sort of hurdles do we expect to face in this journey of X=>Y?
Let's gain absolute clarity on these questions before we proceed with getting an expert's guidance.
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