(my version of) The 90/10 Rule

I was listening to Yoko Ono’s show on Satellite Radio yesterday.

She’s actually not a bad DJ. Great taste in music, peaceful speaking voice, and of course, insightful comments between songs.

Right after playing Ray Lamontagne’s title track from Trouble (FYI, best album put out by ANY artist in the past five years) she quoted Nietzsche:

“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”

MAN. That’s GOT to be the most powerful quotation I’ve heard in a long time.

Kind of got me thinking about (my version of) The 90/10 Rule, aka, “You can’t please everybody.”

Especially when you have new ideas.

Because undoubtedly, about 90% of the people you encounter are going to agree with your ideas, your personality, your philosophies and your work. And the remaining 10% are going to think you suck.

The challenge is that most people get so hung up on the 10 that they forget all about the 90.

BIG mistake.

PERFECT EXAMPLE: I used to waste my time with speaker evaluations. (Gosh, what a waste of paper.) And even when the audience response was overwhelmingly positive, even when I’d give the best presentation of my life, there was always someone just WAITING to be offended.

So I’d get hung up on that one person. And he’d drive me CRAZY! Which meant I allowed the minor negatives overshadow the major positives.

Look. You can’t allow that to happen to you. You’re stronger than that.

You need to forget about the 10 and focus on the 90.

And this isn’t about giving speeches, either.

This is about something bigger. This is about life. This is about dealing with The Haters. This is about having the courage to look someone in the eye and say, “You know what? If you don’t like me, that’s cool. But don’t expect me to waste any time and energy trying to change your mind.”

Just keep dancing. If they can’t hear the music, screw ‘em. Their loss.

NAMETAG TRIO
1. Don’t try to convert the atheists.
2. Unless the majority says you suck, you probably didn’t suck.
3. Screw the 10. Stick with the 90.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s your version of the 90/10 Rule?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
Post it here!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
Author/Speaker/That Guy with the Nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com

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