In this much-needed episode of Big Dreams Great Teams, Paula Maidens dives into a growing issue that’s costing business owners serious time, money and peace of mind. It is the difference between advice and opinion.

Paula unpacks how well-meaning but misinformed recommendations can derail your decision-making and explains how to safeguard yourself and your business by learning to tell the difference. Drawing on her own 20+ years in HR, recruitment and business ownership, she shares practical guidance on when to lean into others' experiences, and when to seek genuine, expert advice that will stand up under pressure.

If you’ve ever been swayed by someone else’s "this worked for me" suggestion, hired based on a referral in a Facebook group, or used a shared document as a legal template, this episode is a must-listen.

Paula also introduces her Team Performance Audit, her powerful service designed to give business owners personalised, expert advice about their unique team setup, challenges and goals.

🎧 Listen in and learn the key questions to ask when someone is giving you input so you can stop relying on borrowed opinions and start making confident, informed decisions that truly suit your business.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:

• The critical difference between advice, opinion and shared experience
• Four common ways that advice gets confused with opinion (and why it matters)
• How to protect your business from costly mistakes by asking better questions
• Why your growing business needs to move beyond scrappy, borrowed advice
• The shift every CEO must make from free Facebook feedback to expert guidance

EPISODE CHAPTERS

00:00 – Introduction: The advice epidemic in business
01:31 – The danger of taking opinion as expert advice
03:12 – Paula’s personal standard for giving advice
05:40 – The “sample size of one” problem and the difference between advice and opinion
08:22 – Generalists giving specialist advice
10:41 – Industry norms versus legal compliance
12:52 – Why Paula refers clients to lawyers
15:12 – The risks of taking advice from Facebook groups
17:34 – Who you should take advice from (and why)
20:00 – Evolving beyond scrappy startup decisions
22:14 – Questions to ask to test real expertise
24:28 – Introducing the Team Performance Audit
25:40 – Final thoughts: Protect your business with real advice

LINKS MENTIONED:

Explore the Team Performance Audit – a powerful tool to pinpoint where trust (and performance) is breaking down in your business. This includes a detailed questionnaire, a 45-minute strategy call, and a written recommendations report.

Click here: 👉🏻 https://paulamaidens.com/go/team-performance-audit/

CONNECT WITH PAULA:

Website:https://paulamaidens.com/

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/paulamaidensconsulting/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/paulamaidensbuildingawesometeams

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulamaidens/