If you want to build a truly remarkable business and life, there’s something you have to make peace with from the get-go: many people won’t understand it. And they will criticize you over it.
In the beginning, you really can’t blame them
You come out with big dreams and ideas that require tons of commitment, discipline, and risks. You want to accomplish something only about 1% of the population has, and you have little to no track record of doing it. The odds are stacked against you, and most people tend to go where the odds are good.
But as you start making progress, the skepticism changes.
These things tend to go in stages: first, it’s people ignoring you. Then, they doubt you. And when you finally achieve something meaningful, instead of awe and applause, many will criticize you because they will envy what you’ve built.
If you read this and think, “Man, I can’t win,” you’re right. You rarely can.
Pursuing something ambitious often means behaving in ways that other people consider abnormal. You’re not working 9-5; you’re working 60-90 hours every week. You’re not going out on weekends; you’re back in the office. You don’t log out when work stops and switch your brain off; you’re almost obsessed with your business, how to make it better and how to grow it faster. And it can all last years.
To a regular person, it all may seem weird and crazy. Your decisions and priorities make no sense to them because they would never choose them.
If you aim to please the majority of the population and have little to no criticism of your life, forget about being a visionary or building something big. The actions that those goals require make no sense to most people, so they will pummel you with ridicule, criticism, and dismissal at almost every stage of the process. But the question is: if you wouldn’t choose to live their life, why are you choosing to listen to their criticism of yours?
You can’t build an unconventional life while expecting everyone to understand your choices. That doesn’t mean every critic is wrong or that you should ignore all feedback. Sometimes, people raise legitimate concerns that you need to hear; you don’t want to confuse faith in your abilities with arrogance that can lead to blind spots. The key is knowing the difference between constructive criticism and someone simply failing to understand the path you’ve chosen. You don’t need everyone’s approval to keep moving forward, but you do need people who understand what you’re trying to do.
One of the best things you can do is surround yourself with people who are in the arena with you. Find other entrepreneurs, business owners, and ambitious people who take risks, work toward big goals, and deal with the same uncertainty.
They don’t have to agree with every decision you make. But they understand the commitment it takes to pursue something difficult because they’re doing it themselves. You won’t have to explain to them why you’re working so hard or why you’re willing to sacrifice short-term comfort for a long-term vision, because they already understand those trade-offs.
Not everyone will understand your ambition.
Not everyone will support your ambition.
You may never convince some people that what you’re doing makes sense.
So stop trying to.
Find and surround yourself with people who understand the journey, surround yourself with them, and keep building.
