Consider the Source - it says a lot

Always consider the source of information and advice before you act on it. This is very important.

Remember that people talk. Sometimes they talk just to hear themselves talk. Talk is incredibly cheap and often it's meaningless.

One of the reasons that there are commercial jingles and sound bites and video clips is because all those people who talk are often simply repeating what they hear.

It's what they know, so it's what they repeat.

Depending on how old you are, you might recall the "hemi" engines that Chrysler Corporation engineered and used in its vehicles produced in the 1950s through the 1970s. Well, they brought them back 30 years later and started advertising them as one of the features on the Dodge trucks.

I was at a party once when the topic of trucks came up, and some of the people started talking about Dodge trucks and how they liked the styling. One of the guests at the party remarked, "And, they've got that hemi engine." He mentioned it several times.

Each time, I figured he was just talking like the rest of the guests, and didn't really know what he was talking about. So, I inquired as to what a "hemi" engine was. His response was priceless, "I don't know, but they have them in their new trucks."

So, you see, you need to consider the source when you listen to what people say because some people just talk, and they're simply parroting back what they've heard somewhere else. They're communicating, but they're not providing any useful information.

If you're going to be doing something important like spending or investing money, consider the source and ignore people who seem to know everything. Pay attention to people who really know something worthwhile - the voice of experience and insight - not just a parrot on a perch.

By the way, hemi is short for hemispherical. It's the rounded top of the combustion chamber that replaced the old "flat head" engines. It's old tried and true technology, although the ads for Chrysler trucks might lead you (and others) to believe that it's something new.

So, consider your source of information. Sometimes what "everyone is talking about" is just that - something that seemingly everyone is talking about. The key is to listen to someone who really knows the subject and has experience and success in the area of discussion.

Talk is cheap, and if you're listening to a bad source of information, it can turn out to be rather expensive for you, especially if what you intend to do with the information involves your money.

Done with Consider the Source, back to Are You Frugal

Done with Consider the Source, back to Spending Your Money