In the second section of the Chris Anderson quotation manifesto are several quotes having to do with “Insults.”
Many are funny and most are relatively lighthearted, but the one that resonated with me was:
“A critic is somebody who writes about things they don’t like.”
On the surface, this seems like a relatively simple observation, but beneath is meaning and significance that goes much deeper…
We are all criticized in our lives and many of us know plenty of “critics,” whether they are paid professionals or just condescending ass holes…
Either way, before we give merit to their critical opinions, think about the type of person we are dealing with… These are the pieces of shit that drown themselves in pessimism and negativity… The type of people who live their lives predicated on resistance and because they are miserable and pathetic do-nothing’s, they want us to be that too.
My entire baseball and broadcasting career, I have dealt with the harshest critics imaginable… Yet, over many years, I have been able to build up an immunity to the endless negative feedback loop. By recognizing the source and understanding how pathetic 99% of them actually are, I have easily been able to liberate myself from the chains of condemnation and judgment from fuck faced outsiders…
Sure, we should all be aware of what we need to improve upon, and it is our duty and obligation to continue to educate ourselves and constantly seek growth… But just as Teddy Roosevelt reminded us:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Thanks for the reminder, Chris. 👊
-EB
P.S. Have you got your official Team GoHard Foot Reflexology Board yet!?
If not, what are you waiting on!
Click here to get yours now (your feet can thank me later). 👊