Career Advice That Is Outdated Or Just Plain Wrong

Today, everyone proclaims expertise in this or that area, dishing out advice like it's a universal truth. Much of the advice out there is either poorly researched, self-indulgent, outdated or just plain bad. Career advisors are just one guilty party. Even a quick search of AOL Jobs, where we welcome opposing viewpoints, turns up contradictory wisdom, like "how to move into a career you love" and "why doing what you love isn't a career plan."

Both articles contain sensible points, but as anyone who's taken a persuasive writing course knows, any opinion can be made to look like the truth. Lawyers, the ultimate experts in persuasion, do this especially well, but it's common knowledge in today's litigious society that the best argued case wins and the outcome isn't always justice.

A single piece of advice can never work for everyone. Just as scientists have learned that no single dieting model can apply to the entire population because everyone's body is more or less a unique ecosystem, it holds similarly true that everyone's professional makeup – their experience, interests, assorted skills, natural born talents – is different. With that in mind, AOL Jobs turned to Quora for a critical look at some popular career advice that many tout as sacred scripture, and points out the flaws.