Advice is cheap, context is priceless.

Happy Thursday,

Recently, I bumped into a very successful Kiwi entrepreneur. Someone well regarded in the industry. Within seconds, he started giving me leadership advice. With 100% confidence in his words of wisdom, 100% good intention to be helpful, but 0% understanding of me, my team, or the business we run (sound familiar?). That interaction inspired this week’s newsletter, and a topic worth unplugging and talking about.

🧠 LEARN something.

Advice itself isn’t the problem. We’ve all given it, and we’ve all sought it. A quick scroll through LinkedIn or any social feed shows just how much advice is out there on leadership, business, fitness, lifestyle, you name it. Where it gets dicey is when leaders (like our Kiwi entrepreneur friend) take their personal experience and package it as universal best practice, often with absolute confidence. It’s not usually intentional or arrogant (although it can come across that way). Instead, it’s due to a cognitive blind spot called self-serving bias, which is our tendency to attribute our successes to our skill, intelligence, or effort, while downplaying the role of context, timing, or luck. And just as easily, when things don’t go our way, we look outward, blaming the process, the people, or the circumstances. We have all done it at some stage.

The danger for us as leaders is that self-serving bias leads us to overestimate our role in success and underestimate the importance of context. That’s when personal advice turns into best practice, assuming “what worked for me must work for everyone else.” It sounds convincing in our own head, but creates real problems if others try to copy-paste our approach, which may not fit their teams or culture. Leadership isn’t one size fits all, it’s nuanced, situational, and constantly evolving. Understanding this bias isn’t just an intellectual exercise, it’s a call for humility. Personally, for me, it’s a reminder to share insights as stories, not prescriptions. And to recognise that advice, while well-intentioned, only adds value when it helps others think critically about what’s right for them, not simply replicate what once worked for us.

🤔 REFLECT on an idea.

Advice is cheap, but most of what makes advice effective is not the counsel itself, but the context in which it is couched. That turns generic tips into meaningful guidance. For leaders, this means resisting the urge to hand down universal “rules” and instead coach, challenge, and help others think critically.

😊 SMILE a little.

Ah yes, tell me more about your leadership philosophy, the one that worked on Dave in Accounts back in 1996… when he was struggling with the fax machines. 😂

 DO IT to get results.

Here’s a simple tip (one we teach in our coaching skills programs) that can help you break out of that advising mindset. When someone comes to you with a problem, try the L.P.B. approach. Just ask them:

• Do you want me to Listen?

• Do you want me to Problem-solve?

• Or do you want me to Brainstorm with you?

Not only give them the support they actually need (while avoiding the trap of advice without context), but you also empower them, and ultimately, you help them move forward with confidence.

🌱 How we can support you and your team.

We provide strategic leadership solutions tailored to align with your business strategy, size, and budget. We can support your with:

• 1:1 Leadership and Performance Coaching

• Team Coaching, for high performing teams

• 1:1 Health & Lifestyle Coaching for busy stressed leaders.

• Workshops, offsites and team development.

• Or our flagship individual Leadership Coaching Programs.

Kia pai tō wiki

Kenny Bhosale

CEO & Founder, The Bridge Leaders