Can you tell someone else how to do something if you don't know yourself?

My girls love it when I teach them some ballet.

I did ballet for years so I have a fair bit of knowledge.

I always did well at it too.

So I do feel that I can give them a fair amount of help.

However I’m not thinking I'm perfect but at least I can teach them what I know.

Plus I know why each bit is important and how learning one bit leads to the next (doing a pirouette is a complicated business!)

One of my daughters asked for my opinion about her video editing.

I gave my view but she discounted it because she said I know nothing about it.

What if, though, I knew nothing about ballet.

Would I be able to teach them?

Would they value my opinion?

And would it be with any authority.

I could learn with them for sure.

But would they trust me or would they challenge me on it.

I coach people to assist them with making their lives better - happier and easier.

Can I do this with any authority?

The answer is yes. I do have authority on that because I have done it for myself.

However, unlike with ballet, it is different for each person.

So the only person, at the end of the day, who has full authority is the person themselves.

However, I can teach you how I did it and I can give you the tools and I can walk along side you as you work it out for yourself.

And because I understand what’s behind each ‘step’ I am in an excellent place to work through it with you.

When you ask for help or rely on someone else’s opinion - make sure they have the authority to be trusted in that field.