The noise doesn’t go away, but the most successful people I know have figured out how to live with it, to lean on the people who believe in them, and to push onward with their goals.
I was cautious. I stuck to what I knew. It’s hard to put into wards what sometimes you pick up in the ether, the quiet, cruel nuancs of not belonging-the subtle cues that tell you to not risk anything, to find your people and just stay put.
This may be the fundamental problem with caring a lot about what others think: It can put you on the established path-the my isn’t that impressive path-and keep you there for a long time. Maybe it stops you from swerving, from ever even considering a swerve, because what you risk losing in terms of other people’s high regard can feel too costly.
