Good recommendations

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve received some interesting feedback from two friends. One said: „I would have read the book How I get things sorted I don’t need to buy it at all – you give me the best advice anyway. Someone else told me how much the book has inspired her,
There are obviously people whose recommendations you can rely on. But every now and then I also get recommendations that surprise me. „You might find this interesting?“ someone writes to me, and I just find myself wondering, „Huh, why?“
The difference surely lies, above all, in knowing the other person. Someone who knows me well knows what topics I’m working on, what interests me (at the moment) and what might be of general interest – and what isn’t.
A good recommendation also depends on whether the other person is knowledgeable about the subject. I trust the recommendations of people who have a thorough understanding of their field – be it psychological literature or knowledge of computer programmes.
And last but not least, the less self-interest there is behind a recommendation, the more trustworthy it is. I have less trust in the seller at the Christmas market who’s promoting a fantastic, unique car care product than in a friend who recommends the same thing to me…However, neither of them would have much success with their recommendation, because I still consider cycling to be the best way to get around town.

What have your experiences been like? What makes a recommendation a good one in your view?