It’s not really a secret that I’m a big Netflix fan. Downtime is important from time to time, and Netflix has some cool stuff you just won’t find anywhere else.
Anyway, a couple of weeks ago I gave myself a day off and watched a movie called “Craigslist Joe.”
It was about this dude who had a radical idea to survive completely off of Craiglist for 30 days. The terms of his challenge were – he would start with just the clothes on his back, no money, no food, would not make use of any of his personal contacts, and would only use a laptop, a cell phone, and a portable Wi-Fi card for Craigslisting.
For everything else he needed to survive for 30 days, he would find it via Craigslist.
No money? No food? No connections? Nowhere to sleep or shower? Sounds like an insane idea doesn’t it?
Some days he slept on the street. Some days he didn’t eat. But by the end of the 30 days, Joe had racked up what he said to be 30 of the most inspirational days of his life.
But he never would have done it if he would have listened to the naysayers.
They All Said He Was Crazy
They all told him he was crazy. They all said he would never make it 30 days. They even made fun of him, and that’s just the stuff they showed on camera. Imagine the kinds of things he probably heard when he told people about his idea. It’s tough to even think about.
And that happens in all of our lives.
Most of us have great ideas about cool things we want to do, but we never do them because we are afraid of what people might think or say. We are afraid that if we tell someone, they’ll make fun of us.
But you know what?
The people that have the stones to go out and make those big ideas happen, are usually the ones that live the fullest lives of anyone.
Chris Gillebeau had an idea to visit every country in the world about 5 years ago. People told him he was insane and he would never make it.
But he did it anyway and five years later, he has finished his journey, has written several books in the process, including the best-selling $100 Startup, and has built a community of amazing customers and followers that provide him with the lifestyle he has always wanted to live.
Why Should You Care?
Because you have big ideas. You have something that you want to show the world or something great you want to do with your life, or else you wouldn’t be reading this blog.
Here’s the thing.
No matter how awesome your ideas are about what you want to do with your free time, there will always be some people who will tell you that your ideas are silly.
There will always be some people that will make fun of you.
There will always be some people that will laugh at you for wanting to change the world.
And there will always be some people that will mock the things you have created.
But don’t sweat it, and don’t blame them. It’s human nature for people to make fun of or be envious of the things they don’t understand. Some people just thrive on drama and try to get attention at the expense of others.
I say let them continue to waste their mental energy.
- Don’t focus on the negatives.
- Focus on your supporters and followers.
- Surround yourself with success and focus on all of the positives.
- Keep the people close who will encourage your ideas and provide helpful input.
- Associate with the people that appreciate your work for the value it brings to their lives and to the lives of others.
And just keep learning, keep striving forward, keep improving, and keep doing what you’re doing to make the world a better place.
If you can do that, your mind will be in a much better place to make your big ideas happen.