9.16.2011

Stop Playing to the Crowd.

There is always a crowd to play too.

Sometimes they are standing on your bare feet cheering your name. Other times they’re red in the face throwing anything within arms reach at you as they hiss violently in your direction.

The crowd is always there.

And it’s easy to get caught up in the competition of winning the crowd over. It’s easy to trade your original goal for the immediate gratification of winning over the crowd.

It’s deceiving. And dangerously distracting.

In your temporary paranoia, there is one big glaring issue you might have forgotten

The crowd is always wrong.

Perhaps this needs to be clarified.

The crowd is always wrong for you. Despite at times the startling odds and disproportionate outrage, the best path for you is usually at odds with what the crowd is cheering for.

The crowd is wrong.

It might take a week, a monthly, or a century, but conventional wisdom and mass opinion always become irrelevant.

That’s what happens.

People get excited and do crazy things and then pretend to forget all about it when you remind them of it later. The crowd dynamic only amplifies that.

And for some reason, we get all flustered when the two people next to us start voicing their opinion.

The crowd’s just a loud opinion.

Never forget that.

The crowd is emotional not logical
You have a goal and sensible tests to get you there.
The crowd is driven by sensation not substance.
You need smart advice driven by experience.
The crowd cares about their experience.
You care about your dream.
The crowd wants most for you to be like them.
You want most to accomplish your dream.

Your crowd might be the executive management team at your company. It might be the existing experts in your industry. It might be people you hang out with at church or social events.

They are good people. Usually.

The crowd makes them bad.

You can spend your time making sure the crowd is cheering for you or you can focus on the success you really want for you.

One is sexy now.

The other is everything you ever wanted… forever.

Maybe it’s not a hard choice after all.

Anonymous

Wonderful my friend!
Chose your crowd wisely! We become the average of the 7 closest people we interact with regularly!
Thanks for the great thoughts,
Manfred
http://www.qli-international.com

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Manfred,

Thanks for the kind words.

Let me reframe your feedback. I don’t think you need to “get a better crowd” — although that is always a smart move.

I think you need to have a bigger vision than the crowd and ignore their feedback altogether. Perhaps “ignore” is too harsh a term. Maybe “filter” better describes what I am feeling.

The crowd has feedback and thoughts and ideas. And sometimes their feedback is pretty darn amazing. But nothing they say/advise should sway us from our mission.

It’s too easy to do stuff just because 7 or 8 other people think you should. That’s the wimps way out. :-)

Dan

p.s. What do you think?

Anonymous

I think we should have coffee again soon!

Anonymous

Wonderful my friend!
Chose your crowd wisely! We become the average of the 7 closest people we interact with regularly!
Thanks for the great thoughts,
Manfred
http://www.qli-international.com
Tony Gowland

Thanks for that Dan, I think you just clarified why I’ve never quite felt comfy with democracy. Keep it coming. :)

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Ha. Love your wit, Tony.

There is nothing like ignoring the bystanders and living life on your own terms.

Dan

Tony Gowland

Thanks for that Dan, I think you just clarified why I’ve never quite felt comfy with democracy. Keep it coming. :)
Ann Larson

I disagree that the crowd is always wrong. One’s crowd is a direct reflection of their success or failure. Their feedback and interactions need to be taken into consideration when one considers whether they are acheiving their goals or not. If the feedback and interactions are dissatisfactory to your growth and goal acheivement then your actions and methods need to be changed immediately. The same actions and methods never breed different results. The crowd is your sounding board.

Robert Terson

Ann, I agree, the crowd is not always wrong and you should get all the feedback you can; but after all is said and done, you must make your own decisions and go with what your instincts tell you. “To thine own self be true,” Shakespeare said. It’s your dream and you’re responsible for achieving it; others will have their opinions, may truly wish the best for you and believe their opinions in your best interest; but if your gut says different, you must go with your gut. A great example of that in history is when Galileo went against 18 centuries of accepted scientific law to prove Aristotle wrong re “the heavier an object is, the faster it will fall”. That said, I’ll add this: I love posts like this which make us think; it’s blogging at it’s finest!

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Robert, for helping me say much better what I was attempting to say. :-)

Dan

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

You bring up a good point, Ann. Perhaps we need to clarify the difference between the CROWD and FRIENDS.

One is very useful, the other is just a distraction. In my experience, the crowd seems to have a lot of opinions, but not the the feedback that helps you grow. It’s all sensational.

Dan

p.s. What do you think? Is there a difference?

Ann Larson

To me, the friends are part of the crowd. The only person fully vested in your goals is yourself. Friends can be just as sensationalizing as any other member of the crowd.

The crowd gives you feedback. The feedback you receive may be what you want, signifying that you are still on track to acheive your goals. Or, the crowd may give you feedback that signifies that you are spending too much time bending to what they want for you and thus, you are derailed from your path to success. Consistent reevaluation and adjustment in action is always crucial to acheiving your goals and dreams. The crowd is one sounding board that I feel should be utilized.

Ann ; )

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Ann,

I see it your way. Good observations.

There is a healthy balance between being self-assured and being arrogant. I like your “sound board” description.

Without any feedback, we can become delusional. Right? The crowd keeps us questioning and curious.

Dan

Ann Larson

I disagree that the crowd is always wrong. One’s crowd is a direct reflection of their success or failure. Their feedback and interactions need to be taken into consideration when one considers whether they are acheiving their goals or not. If the feedback and interactions are dissatisfactory to your growth and goal acheivement then your actions and methods need to be changed immediately. The same actions and methods never breed different results. The crowd is your sounding board.
Robert Terson

Ann, I agree, the crowd is not always wrong and you should get all the feedback you can; but after all is said and done, you must make your own decisions and go with what your instincts tell you. “To thine own self be true,” Shakespeare said. It’s your dream and you’re responsible for achieving it; others will have their opinions, may truly wish the best for you and believe their opinions in your best interest; but if your gut says different, you must go with your gut. A great example of that in history is when Galileo went against 18 centuries of accepted scientific law to prove Aristotle wrong re “the heavier an object is, the faster it will fall”. That said, I’ll add this: I love posts like this which make us think; it’s blogging at it’s finest!
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Manfred,

Thanks for the kind words.

Let me reframe your feedback. I don’t think you need to “get a better crowd” — although that is always a smart move.

I think you need to have a bigger vision than the crowd and ignore their feedback altogether. Perhaps “ignore” is too harsh a term. Maybe “filter” better describes what I am feeling.

The crowd has feedback and thoughts and ideas. And sometimes their feedback is pretty darn amazing. But nothing they say/advise should sway us from our mission.

It’s too easy to do stuff just because 7 or 8 other people think you should. That’s the wimps way out. :-)

Dan

p.s. What do you think?
http://twitter.com/CoachLee Leanne HoaglandSmith

In the book From Values to Actions, the author Harry Kraemer calls the crown “those guys” and yet no one knows who those guys are. Far too many people even though they may fear the crowd, they embrace it because they fear knowing who they are even more so. The desire to be liked unfortunately transcends common sense and individual risk taking. Don’t rock the boat is truly about the crowd. Another insightful piece, thanks Dan, Leanne Hoagland-Smith

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Leanne, for the great reference to Harry Kraemer and his insights. I struggle with “those guys” all the time. They seem to be the only reason for half of what we do.

Dan

http://twitter.com/CoachLee Leanne HoaglandSmith

In the book From Values to Actions, the author Harry Kraemer calls the crown “those guys” and yet no one knows who those guys are. Far too many people even though they may fear the crowd, they embrace it because they fear knowing who they are even more so. The desire to be liked unfortunately transcends common sense and individual risk taking. Don’t rock the boat is truly about the crowd. Another insightful piece, thanks Dan, Leanne Hoagland-Smith
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Ha. Love your wit, Tony.

There is nothing like ignoring the bystanders and living life on your own terms.

Dan
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

You bring up a good point, Ann. Perhaps we need to clarify the difference between the CROWD and FRIENDS.

One is very useful, the other is just a distraction. In my experience, the crowd seems to have a lot of opinions, but not the the feedback that helps you grow. It’s all sensational.

Dan

p.s. What do you think? Is there a difference?
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Robert, for helping me say much better what I was attempting to say. :-)

Dan
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Leanne, for the great reference to Harry Kraemer and his insights. I struggle with “those guys” all the time. They seem to be the only reason for half of what we do.

Dan
Anonymous

I think we should have coffee again soon!
Ann Larson

To me, the friends are part of the crowd. The only person fully vested in your goals is yourself. Friends can be just as sensationalizing as any other member of the crowd.

The crowd gives you feedback. The feedback you receive may be what you want, signifying that you are still on track to acheive your goals. Or, the crowd may give you feedback that signifies that you are spending too much time bending to what they want for you and thus, you are derailed from your path to success. Consistent reevaluation and adjustment in action is always crucial to acheiving your goals and dreams. The crowd is one sounding board that I feel should be utilized.

Ann ; )
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Ann,

I see it your way. Good observations.

There is a healthy balance between being self-assured and being arrogant. I like your “sound board” description.

Without any feedback, we can become delusional. Right? The crowd keeps us questioning and curious.

Dan
Pingback: The Inconvenience of Leadership. | Edge of Explosion | Edge of Explosion!

Stop Playing to the Crowd.

The crowd is always there.

The crowd is wrong.

The crowd’s just a loud opinion.

The crowd makes them bad.

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