Are you overly-concerned about the opinions of others?
Holding back because of what “they” might say?
I shared a story in The Coaching Jungle Facebook group today, and I wanted to send it to you (if you aren't in Facebook group yet, come on over!)
Remember the scandal
involving New York Congressman Anthony Weiner about five years ago? Weiner was on track to do big things in the political world, until he got caught sending pictures of his private parts to a woman on Twitter (one who wasn’t his wife).
Actually, millions of people saw the picture because he tweeted it out to
the world by mistake!
At the time, it seemed like everyone was talking about the Anthony Weiner scandal. I’m in Canada, but I follow American politics, so I was seeing stories about it everywhere.
You’d think that all 7.5 Billion people in the world were talking about Anthony Weiner when all this was happening.
But were they?
In an article that she wrote for Success Magazine, Mel Robbins told the story of a cab ride that she took in New York City when the scandal was at its peak. Looking to make small talk with the driver, Robbins asked him what he thought of everything going on with Anthony Weiner.
“Anthony who???” was his response.
That’s right – at the center of this major scandal and right in New York City, this cab driver (someone who you’d think would know about it) had no clue who
Anthony Weiner was!
Nor did he care.
The driver had his own life and problems. He was more concerned with paying his rent
on time, or the problems that his daughter was having, or who was going to win the big game on the weekend.
He wasn’t thinking about Anthony Weiner. He didn’t even know who he was.
The lesson: People aren’t thinking about you nearly as much as you think they are!
We blow up our importance and imagine that what we’re doing is on the minds of others all the time, when in reality they aren’t thinking of
us.
That’s a liberating feeling isn’t it?
It means that you can go do what you want without worrying about
others.
Start that business …
Write the book that you always wanted to …
Release your painting out into the world …
Whenever you hold back out of fear of the opinions of others, remember this story.
Just be careful when you tweet!
Marc