Criticizing The Critics

Join the great people throughout history who rejected critics and pursued their passion

If your best friend or most beloved family member mistakenly feeds you poison, you will die just as surely as you would if you were poisoned by your worst enemy. Obviously, we all strive to avoid things that are poisonous or toxic to us physically, but far too many among us allow our minds to be poisoned with toxic messages and thoughts. We all worry incessantly about what everyone thinks of us when the only opinion that matters is the one we have of ourselves.
 

The great comedian W.C. Fields said, “It doesn’t matter what people call you. It matters what you answer to.” History reveals countless examples of powerful leaders and iconic figures who changed the world because they listened to the voice inside them instead of the critics.
 
Winston Churchill’s father told him he was “unfit for a career in law or politics.”
 
Thomas Edison was fired by Western Union, and the head of a major technology organization said about Edison’s light bulb, “Everyone acquainted with the subject will recognize it as a conspicuous failure.”
 
Rudyard Kipling was told by the San Francisco Examiner, “I’m sorry, Mr. Kipling, but you just don’t know how to use the English language.”
 
Henry Ford was told, “The horse is here to stay, but the automobile is only a novelty, a fad.”
 
J.K. Rowling was rejected by over a dozen publishers who read her Harry Potter book. She was told not to quit her day job and, “Children just aren’t interested in witches and wizards anymore.”
 
Walt Disney was fired from the Kansas City Star newspaper and told that he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.”
 
Oprah Winfrey was fired from a local TV station. They told her she was “unfit for TV.”
 
The Beatles were rejected by multiple record labels. Among other negative criticisms, they were told, “guitar groups are on the way out” and “The Beatles have no future in show business.”
 
Barbara Streisand’s mother told her she’d never be a singer because her voice wasn’t good enough, and she’d never be pretty enough to be an actress.
 
Marilyn Monroe was told by a modeling agency, “You better get secretarial work or get married.”

Elvis Presley was fired after his first performance on the Grand Ole Opry. He was told, “You ain’t going nowhere, son. You ought to go back to driving a truck.”
 
I have found, through pursuing my own career as an author, movie producer, entrepreneur, and columnist, that there is no shortage of critics willing to tell me why things won’t work and how ridiculous I am to believe in my dreams. During many discouraging times, their words have been fuel and fertilizer to me as I held onto the voice in my head and rejected the critics.
 
As you go through your day today, join the great people throughout history that rejected critics and pursued their passion.
 
Today’s the day!

Author Bio

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books including The Ultimate Gift.  He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Follow @Stovallauthor