Successful entrepreneurs support each other.
People who are still figuring things out themselves can sometimes be quicker to criticise.
That may sound a little harsh, but I think there’s an important nuance here.
When you put yourself out there, have an opinion and position yourself as a thought leader, you will get criticism.
That comes with the territory.
And criticism isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
In fact, you should listen to it.
But you should also be critical of the criticism you receive.
Who is the feedback coming from?
Does that person have experience with what you’re trying to achieve?
Have they built something themselves, taken risks, made mistakes and learned what it takes to truly go all in?
I personally get the most value from feedback from people who are further ahead than me, or who clearly have more experience in a particular area.
Not because other opinions don’t matter.
But because context matters.
I also don’t believe there are fixed categories of “successful people” and “less successful people.”
Everyone has potential.
Everyone sees roughly the same world around them.
The difference often lies in what you choose to do with it.
You can look at someone who is trying something, makes a mistake or puts themselves out there and think:
What are they doing?
Or you can think:
Interesting. What can I learn from this?
The second approach will take you further.
And there’s another important factor when you position yourself as a thought leader.
People who have known you for years often look at your content through a completely different lens than people who have never met you.
Your friends, colleagues and people close to you know all the different versions of you.
A prospect mostly sees what you consistently show them.
They see your knowledge.
Your experience.
Your effort.
Your vision.
And that’s exactly why thought leadership works.
You don’t need everyone to see you as an expert.
You need the right people to understand what you’re good at and what they can come to you for.
So listen to criticism.
Learn from it.
But don’t automatically let it steer you.
Keep looking at who you want to reach, why you’re putting yourself out there and whose experience can genuinely help you grow.
Support will take people further than cynicism ever will.
