Focus on the moment, not the monsters that may or may not be up ahead.
Ryan HolidayRead
Being criticized in the media is a good problem to have - most of the time. It means you're doing something that is at least interesting or cool or crazy enough to be noticed. It might not always feel good, but it's usually better than the alternative of obscurity.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Being criticized means you are making an impact, even if it feels uncomfortable.
Ryan Holiday emphasizes that criticism from the media often signifies that you are doing something significant and noteworthy. Although it may not always be pleasant to receive negative feedback, it is preferable to being overlooked and irrelevant, as the attention indicates your endeavors are engaging or innovative.
Themes
CriticismMediaSuccessObscurityAttention
In practice
Example use cases
You can use this quote in a speech about resilience in the face of public scrutiny.
More from Ryan Holiday
All quotes →The idea that only the swaggering, all-knowing, and ruthlessly ambitious succeed is a lie. One that has discouraged so many people with so much potential - and worse, encouraged many more to crash and burn.
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Virality, at its core, is asking someone to spend their social capital recommending or linking or posting about you for free.
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Ordinary people shy away form negative situations, just as they do with failure. They do their best to avoid trouble. What great people do is the opposite. They are their best in these situations. They turn personal tragedy or misfortune - really anything, everything - to their advantage.
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There is no good or bad without us, there is only perception. There is the event itself and the story we tell ourselves about what it means.
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Virality is not an accident. It is engineered. And that's why growth hackers beat traditional marketers.
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