Never give in to the opinions of others

Seneca says, “To achieve a good life, what we need to do is to conform to what is virtuous and not to what others think. We should pay no attention to what others consider shameful or miserable, and do not walk with the crowd”

What is the wise Stoic telling us? To walk our path, and not regard the opinions of others. Because if we know ourselves, and our intentions, and we believe they are good, why should we listen to someone telling us otherwise?

I recently was in Miami for a content week hosted by a mastermind I’m a part of, and I sat down with my friend and we chatted about some of the things we are implementing in our businesses, and he asked me, “How do you not care what people think about your choices.”

It’s a great question and one that I still struggle with sometimes. But I told him the same thing I told myself. “You owe it to yourself to be better, and if you are trying to make the world a better place, it makes no logical sense for you to listen to someone who gave up on the world”

Pessimists are right 99% of the time, until 1% of the time the Optimists are right. Then Pessimists watch the optimists change the world.

Here are four ways not to listen to the opinions of others

1. Hack at the root

This is where you want to go back to the why, be fully intentional with your actions, and also do a deep dive into why the opinions of others are negatively impacting you.

2. Stop chasing approval

It’s human nature for us to be loved, and accepted, it’s survival to fit in with a group. But we have the power to reframe who we choose to be by choosing to seek and value our approval above all others.

3. You won’t get hate from above

People who are doing better than you in something don’t have the time or energy to hate you for trying and often are very supportive. The people who hate are the ones that are too afraid to try, or simply being reminded by you that they chose to give up on their goals when it got too hard.

4. People reflect their failures and shortcomings onto you

When people have a problem with you, there may be some truth, but often they project their issues, flaws, and insecurities onto you. It’s never really about you, it was always about them.