“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” -T. Roosevelt
Everyone has an opinion and they are usually more than eager to give it to you. I have found that when you share your vision with someone, especially with friends or family, most of them will tell you why it can’t be done, why it’s a bad idea, they will point out the flaw in your plan (so you should just give up) or any number of things. Quite a few will tell you “What you should do...” or “If I were you…” As hard as it is to hear all this (mostly) negative input, I say, listen to the information they are trying to relating to you. Are they making a valid point? If yes then consider it, if not then say, “Thank you for your input.” and let it go. Just because someone doesn’t get what you are trying to do doesn’t mean that they might not be correct in some aspects. As the saying goes, “Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.” I will agree that 99% of what you hear you will reject but that one little nugget can be very helpful.
The quality of someones opinion/advice goes up, dramatically, if they are one of the ones “in the arena”. They have first hand knowledge of various terrains and some possible pitfalls. That doesn’t mean you should take their word as gospel, however, it’s just that they have more “Boots on the Ground” experience and specific information than the average person. Schooling is great but it doesn’t often prepare you for the real world, for when things go sideways (and things will go sideways). Cheers!