This is often easier said than done. Not caring what people think can be especially difficult when the opinion(s) you’re trying to ignore come from someone with authority or someone who has attributes that you or society deems “successful.” At Clarity we call people in authority or people you or others call succesfull, idealized people or groups.
Some idealized people/groups believe that their views and thoughts on certain things are truth or should be followed because they have a lot of money, certifications, degrees, etc. That said, there are people in society who follow this way of thinking and rarely, if ever, question or go against what idealized people say.
Why should the opinions or views of someone be accepted as right/truth because of what they have or their physical characteristics?
This is not to say that idealized people don’t have valuable perspectives that, if followed, would produce benefits for others. Reminder: Every opinion they have may not be correct because they aren’t perfect human beings. Because of this, we encourage you and anyone else to interrogate/question the views and opinions of others, regardless of the source.
Some of the people you question may take your critical thinking as “disrespectful” and view your willingness to test or question what they’re saying as the wrong thing to do.
These individuals may be overlooking the fact that they aren’t perfect human beings. Even one of the most influential texts in human history, the Bill of Rights, has had to be updated several times, but its creators are often highly celebrated. This shows us that even the people who laid the foundation for the United States to become the economic and political power it is today were imperfect.
Even religious texts tell us man is imperfect.
We sometimes let the opinion of someone else determine whether we’re at internal peace or not
After internalizing all we’ve covered so far, you may have to make a choice.
If deep down you don’t see something wrong with what you think/feel/do or want, but think or know others will pass an opinion that you’d like to avoid, you have to decide if you’re going to allow their opinion to make you feel bad or not.
Sometimes these opinions can be helpful and supportive of your long-term goal. When they aren’t helpful and negatively impact the ability to get what you want, and you decide to give in to them, you may unknowingly be saying to yourself that their opinion is more important than your own.
If they are human just like you, why should their opinion or the opinion of anyone else be more important than yours?
How innovations happen
How many revolutionary inventions and businesses required the founders and leaders to value their opinion over the opinions of other people? For examples we encourage you to watch episodes from The Men Who Built America, The Cars That Build the World, or The Food That Built America created by the History channel.
Other foods for thought
Why should you or anyone listen to the opinion of someone who can’t or is unwilling to defend why you should agree to their points of view or opinions?
If applicable: Do you allow outside opinions to determine what decisions and actions you take in a certain situation? If so, why?
We’d love to hear from you if you’d like to share or explore your answers to any of the above questions.
