We often find ourselves at the mercy of the opinions of others.  

To be criticized publicly is one of the scariest experiences for many people.  

It could range from a mere concern to a full-blown paralyzing fear.  Had we been completely immune to the anxiety of external judgments, many of us would have ended up on a completely different life path than we currently are. 

Have you ever reflected on what you may have not done in fear of what others may say about you?  

Opinions of our parents may have steered us into professions we are not passionate about, convictions of our peers may have veered us away from our own values and judgements of our partners may still be hindering our process of self-expression and creativity. 

But what is an opinion? 

The word opinion comes from a Latin word with a stem “opinari” – to judge, to think, to suppose, with an important part  “op-” , which means “to choose”.  

At one point in time we had an experience and we opted for a thought, we chose how to relate to this experience.

Opinions, therefore, are views and judgements that are initially chosen by us more on the basis of feelings than a fact or reason. 

An opinion about India of someone who contracted a stomach bug and spent most of the trip sick and miserable will be completely different from that of a person who spent a relaxing time on a beach enjoying fruits and local attractions.   One country — two different opinions.   Whereas the former person will be adamant about never traveling to India again, the latter one will be recommending this exotic destination to all his friends. 

Opinions help us navigate through the world. To obtain an opinion is to choose, to imagine, to relate.

And this is what happens to us nearly every minute of our lives; we experience, we judge, we feel, we create emotions, we choose our opinion, we opt for a standpoint.  An opinion is nothing more but a subjective view resulted out of a certain emotion experienced at a particular moment of time.  Nothing more. 

Knowing this should allow us to be more tolerant to the views of others.  

We shouldn’t be afraid or triggered by the views of others, inasmuch as possible we should take it as a chance to question our own attitudes.   And if we stay unconvinced, let us find pride in the fact that having contested our opinion, we stayed unperturbed. 

If we do not constantly challenge our opinions we may start to identify with them. They become our beliefs: powerful subconscious rulers, sneakily managing our decisions for us.   Once a belief is formed it is much harder to change it.  Some of these beliefs are limiting and detrimental to our success while others may be empowering, moving us forward. 

So I guess the point of writing this is twofold. 

Firstly, do not hesitate to go out there and be your authentic self

Be you, do you, and show off your uniqueness and quirkiness. 

There will be plenty of those who will express their unwavering support for you, but equally undoubtedly, there will be those who will judge, talk, and throw a multitude of opinions.  But we know what those are, right? 

A bunch of impressions swayed by circumstantial judgement and momentary emotion.   

Secondly,  an opinion, as any choice, is here to be challenged

This is why it is important to put ourselves out there and be mindfully observant.  With whatever we say or do, we are contesting someone else’s point of view and it may not be well received, it may cause confusion or even anger. 

But by the same token it gives us an opportunity to have an objective glance at ourselves.  We must however ensure that we have mental and emotional capacity to stay composed and unruffled through the process.

Remember, sometimes there is no way for us to know why someone has chosen to think in a certain way.

We may try to challenge their way of thinking, and in the process we may even change our own, who knows? Because changing our point of view means opting into a different way of seeing things, which is getting yet another op-inion… 

One thing is for sure, in the world where people express myriads of diverse opinions, a nonbelligerent alternative to fearfully dimming our light, feeling threatened or angered, would be to simply acknowledge others and express our appreciation and respect for their life experiences.   

Then we shall never be hesitant to speak out our heart.