You Don’t Have To Do Things The Way You’re Told

I caught myself reading a blog I used to read today.  While I appreciated the post on how to gain fame in the “blogosphere,” it also reminded me of something that I often forget.  You don’t have to do things the way you’re told.  Just because you read a manual about how to “run barefoot,” “wash your car,” or “build a robot” – you don’t have to do it the way you’re told.

I get very caught up in Google sometimes.  I wonder what my life would be if I hadn’t grown up in an age where I can simply pull out my Android phone and search for anything I don’t currently know.  “Hey, Casey, can you fix the TV for me?”  I can, once I look up the repair manual online. “Do you know how to properly dispose of a laptop battery?”  Well, you’d suspect I would, being the techie that I am, but I actually won’t know that answer until I Google it.

And the even funnier part is, when I Google a solution to something, I stick STRICTLY to the exact answer I’ve found online.  The truth is, though, I don’t have to.  (Yeah, if I’m replacing an optical drive with a solid-state drive on a MacBook, I might want to follow the instructions, but…)

I’m talking more about the advice that we seek on the internet.  How do I raise my child?  How do I change the way I speak?  How do I overcome my fear of …? The answers to all these questions are simply opinions.  The cool thing about an opinion is that you don’t have to listen to it.

You don’t have to live your life like your favorite blogger.  You don’t have to try and make your world into a replica of your favorite TV show.  You can make your own life, and you can discover your own solutions to your problems. You don’t have to get everything right the first time.  You can figure everything out through trial and error.

What if you don’t find an answer on Google?  (Not likely, I know, but go with me here.)  The only way to figure it out is to try something.  Anything.  Just do something, and you’re bound to get an answer to your question.  I give you permission to skip the Google route this time ’round.  Seriously.

Thanks to Google, iPhones, and Androids, we don’t need to retain knowledge these days, but what if we do?  What if the apocalypse happens in our lifetime?  What would you do without Google?  Are you ready for that?  My advice is simple: ask a question, and answer it in your own way.  You don’t have to do things the way you’re told.