Does this situation sound familiar to you? You are struggling with a problem, so you ask a teacher, friend, or parent for help. They tell you their opinion, but the situation still ends up bad, or not the way you wanted it to be. If you related to this, it is most likely because you only asked for one opinion. When asking for advice it is best to question multiple people on their opinion in order to make the best decision. If you ask multiple people you will avoid bias, get several different perspectives, and have more information on the topic you need advice for.

When people give you advice, their opinion is most likely biased based on their political views, environment, friends, and coworkers. If you ask only one person for advice, what they tell you will most likely be biased on at least one of the things I listed above. The best way to avoid bias is to ask more than one person for advice. When you do this you will be able to recognize bias in other peoples opinions. You can compare one persons opinion to another and figure out what is good and advice, and what is biased. An example of this is a time when I was struggling with a math problem, so I went to my dad for help. He told me his idea of solving the problem but I did not think that it was the most effective way of solving it. After that, I went to my math teacher to ask for his opinion on how to solve the problem. I preferred my teacher's strategy more. I went home to show my dad what my teacher taught me later that day, but he said stubbornly, "I don't agree with him, EVERYTHING was better in the good ol' days." This is an example of bias, because my dad's opinion on how to solve the problem was based on him thinking everything was better in the "good ol' days."

The second reason asking for several opinions is better than just one is you will have multiple perspectives on that topic. Sometimes the best way to solve a problem is seeing things from a new set of eyes. Having multiple perspectives can give you ideas you've never thought about. For example, when I was in fifth grade I had to decide what sport I was going to play year round. I had to decide between soccer and basketball. I went to my mom and asked her what she thought of the situation. She said that I should choose whatever sport I thought I would have the most amount of fun playing and wouldn't get bored of. Then, I went to ask my dad, and he gave me a reason I had never thought of. He told me that I should play basketball because I can play that year round, and won't have to worry about the weather. After he told me that I decided that I was going to play basketball instead of soccer, and I was very happy with my decision.

The final reason asking multiple people for advice is better, is you will have more information about what you need advice for. In a way, this reason goes along with the saying, "The more the merrier." As the more information you have, the merrier. Having greater knowledge when you have a big decision to make can be the most beneficial tactic when actually making the final decision. Even the government supports this idea. When it is election time the government wants its citizens to be educated on who they are voting for. If the government thinks that this is essential, it most likely is.

Seeing things from multiple views, having greater knowledge, and getting rid of bias are very important tactics when making important decisions. This is why it is crucial to ask for multiple opinions when making those important decisions. If everybody implemented these into their daily life it would benefit them greatly. You should definitely consider this the next time you have an big decision.