I came across this quote today and thought it'd be a great one to share here:
Not everyone is going to like what we do, all the time. Not all my posts are going to engage all of you, all the time. Not all of your designs are going to be liked by everyone. Not all of the decisions we make are going to have the glowing support of everyone we know.
We all know this is true in the rational part of our minds- "Well sure, it'd be impossible to please everybody all the time, right?" Yet I think a lot of us can get caught up in the more emotional response of "but I still really want everyone to like me/agree with me/support me!" And that's when we can get ourselves into a bit of a pickle.
Like Swope points out though in the quote above, one surefire way to fail is to try to please everyone all the time. That means that with success, there will be some unhappy clients and customers along the way or disgruntled blog readers. There will be people who you disappoint, people who will never agree, people who will try to thwart your success by tearing you down in some way. There will be people you just can't reach, that you just don't connect with. People that you just can't please.
It can be hard to deal with, and we often spend way too much time and energy trying to remedy a situation when someone is displeased, but there comes a point when we just have to accept that it's all part of the path. It's all part of the good and bad of being in business, the good and bad of life in general.
Don't second guess yourself because the opinion of one person. Don't let yourself be fearful of making an important decision because you're worried about disappointing someone. Don't waste your time and energy dwelling on that one awful customer, that one client who never seemed entirely thrilled with anything you did, that one rude commenter that ruined your day. Don't sacrifice your own integrity to be more "acceptable" in some way.
There are times when things just won't work out, when situations don't really get resolved, when people are unhappy about what you're doing. You have to just accept it. Move on. And remember that you can't please everyone all the time.
What do you think, do you tend to be a "people pleaser?" What sorts of situations have you encountered that made you realize that you really can't please everyone all the time?
