Biased Advice

It's baffling how even if we know what sunk costs are, we still fall victim to it. The other day one of my old students asked me about what she should do for her future because the major she is studying isn't what she wants her career to be.

It's a common problem. She is lucky because she actually knows what she wants to do instead.

Knowing that she was already two and a half years into her degree, my advice to her was for her to finish the degree and then look to go into the area she's interested in while working.

I gave that advice because I placed value on the income that would be generated from her work as she looked to change careers. However, that would have been the wrong advice if money wasn't a factor.

Don't get me wrong. Money certainly should be a factor to a fresh international graduate who just finished an education that costs 5 times a local student.

But if it didn't, and the time spent on studying a subject she hated is a sunk cost, then my advice to her would've been to quit studying it immediately and go do the thing that you like. The real issue is I would've given this piece of advice to anyone already working.

"If you hate what you're doing, and like something else. Go do that thing."

So why did I advise my old student to finish a degree in a subject she hated? The only answer I can think of is that I am a risk-averse person giving risk-averse advice. I didn't want to put someone in a situation without anything to fall back on.

If I advise you to drop out and you fail, I would feel partly responsible. So what should we know when we ask for advice?

The next time you get advice, think about the agenda or inclinations of the person giving the advice before you take it. It will help you understand that even if advice is genuine with good intentions, it still may be biased.