“The best advice I ever got.”
No, I’m not talking about advice I got. 
That line is on the cover of Fortune Magazine, with a list of celebrities who provided the magazine with their answers. Fortune calls it “The Best Advice Issue.”
One celebrity credits Oprah who said, on one of her shows, “Always be the only person who can sign your checks.” 
Another, who grew up in Germany, had a father who pushed him to be fluent in English, calling it “the operating system of the free world.” 
Some of  the celebrities added a bit on  “the worst advice I ever got.”
One says he got bad advice from his parents. His parents told him to ignore bullies. He says, “That doesn’t work. You have to punch them on the nose.”
Largely though, the celebrities talked about situations where they were given what they considered to be good advice. Mostly, it sounds like they took and acted on the advice they were given.
However, their answers might have been different if they were asked:
“What is the best advice you ever took?”
That would really cement the idea that they acted on the advice they were given.
But then there’s a whole other topic, suggested by a couple of the celebrities: “What is the worst advice you ever got? And did you take it?”
Getting back to the “best advice” topic, we could ask: “What is the best advice you never took?” Oh, the regrets that would lead to. “If I’d only ...” and “Why didn’t I...”
But there’s more to this. Like: “What is the best advice I was never given?” Was this the fault of those who you considered your advisors, but never gave  you the advice they should have given you? Or weren’t you listening to the advice they were trying to give you?
One celebrity remembers that when he was 19, he had all these people giving him conflicting advice.  The best advice: Select the best advisors.
But that isn’t easy. You have to ask yourself what credentials your advisors have. And just how good are the options they suggest?
You know, some advisors are relatives. They should be thinking of your best interests. And because they’re relatives, they should be relatively intelligent. 
But maybe you need an advisor who is more intelligent (or more informed) than any of your relatives.
Sometimes, when buying or selling, you need a professional advisor.
But that’s likely to cost you money. Oh, there’s no lack of advisors.
People like to give advice. But sometimes their advice could be considered criticism. A lot of times, they cloak it in criticism.
Like when they say things such as: "Is that your color?"  Or, “Aren’t you putting on a bit of weight?”
Come to think of it, the advice that most people give you is not likely to produce: “the best advice you ever got.”

Chelle Delaney is associate publisher of the Quay County Sun. she can be reached by emailing chelle_delaney@link.freedom.com or calling 461-1952.