Naysayers

“If you can identify a delusional popular belief, you can find what lies hidden behind it—the contrarian truth,” Peter Thiel.

When you start something, you will often hear,”Don’t waste your time. It has never worked. It cannot be done. ” 

People saying this are the naysayers.

Someone wanted to invest $10,000 in Alexander Bell’s invention, the telephone. That, someone, asked for advice from the president of the Western Union. The Western Union president, at the counsel of an internal committee, shot it down. He said, “This invention is worthless and will never amount to anything…”  

It is easy to say “No” and be dismissive of new ideas. But, in the end, there is a good chance the outlandish becomes standard.

The thrill of working at a large company is to do what most long-timers say, “Cannot be done.” Ask yourself, “Am I part of an organization focused on holding the status quo? Is this a place where I can do the “cannot be done?” 

 If your “cannot be done” is groundbreaking, not everyone will support it or value it (at first). You will almost certainly encounter a lot of naysayers, and they will jeer. That is how you will know that you might be onto something. You may have found a building block.

Coming soon — Starters Playbook

Coming soon — Starters Playbook