Every New Idea Faces Rejection

Dear Reader, 

Some light philosophy and creative motivation for you... 

From a Text Exchange between J.R. & T.N.

J: Dude I just thought of a crazy thought

- Imagine new ideas, and how there’s always negative feedback or confusion

- That’s because it’s a new idea. If everyone accepted it from the beginning, it means they would’ve somewhere in their mind have already thought of it.

- So if it’s a truly new idea, no one will have thought of anything like it, and they’ll immediately feel like it’s strange and foreign and reject it

T. THAT IS SO TRUE

- dude

- New ideas ALWAYS face rejection first

- Like it’s the first response it almost like challenges them as [they] come into existence 

Lately we’ve been embarking on some new projects, and completing some segments of projects began previously. (I’d say they’re all done by now, but that would be a lie, but segments of them are done, so I’m just putting the goal line a little beyond these segments.) Point is, we’ve been starting some new things, and additionally, introducing the new ideas built into them.

Funny thing happens when a new idea is introduced: people generally have an aversion to it.

This aversion could be expressed as rational thought, and it’s almost a danger that these aversions are so logical; sometimes these negatives are enough to delay one’s embarkment onto a project, which is fine if your aversion is due to prudence and further research, as long as the emotional element of a rejection stays behind with the rejection itself.

Here’s the issue: there’s risk to everything. Everything has the inherent ability to fail. Nothing is a 100% success. The point of criticism isn’t to think about the negatives, it’s to make the negatives non-existent while continuing to focus on the positives. I don’t think I know anyone who finished something while focusing a majority of their time on the negative aspects of any given project.

What T.N. said is true: Initial rejection is an extremely important part of the creation process. Initial rejection stops everyone who isn’t willing to push beyond.

Every idea, every product, every world-changing thing you have in front of you faced rejection at it’s most vulnerable moment: right now.

 — J.R.