THE SIREN CALL OF THE OPPOSED

Odds are that whenever you try to do something - really do something - there will be opponents and obstacles. They may be very vocal and persistent. Because they want to kill your thing. And if you let them, they will. So don't let them.

Don't let them become the focus of your effort. Don't let their agenda dominate your agenda. Sure, listen to what they have to say because maybe they can help you refine your thing. Maybe they are even right. But listen just as much to the ones who are with you. The ones who see the potential and are willing to pursue it with you.

So often we get so transfixed by the opponents that they use up all we have. There's only so much energy we can expend, and if we let the opponents consume most of it then there will be precious little left to do the work. Good ideas often fail because of fatigue - because we just couldn't stand the noise anymore. Because the opponents wore us down and made us lose sight of the point and the possibilities. Because we started to believe in them instead of the idea.

They're good at it, of course. And it's hard to resist every time they try to lure us back into pointless debates about the wrong things rather than engage in a meaningful discussion about what really matters. Don't shut them out. They'll just accuse you of being disconnected. Give them as much attention and respect as they are due (by your estimation and not theirs), but not a penny more.