A while back I read an article about a person that I had recently met and worked with several months prior. This individual is at the top of his profession, and everyone wants to know “The Secret”, “The Magic”, or “The Formula” to his success. He is inundated with requests for interviews, but unfortunately, he has very little time for them. He relented to a request for a feature article that allowed the writer access to him over several weeks.

I found the article to be a cruel and unfair depiction of this individual that will forever taint the OPINION of those who will never meet … much less … ever get to know this person. The point I am trying to make is that OPINIONS are like “Butts” … everyone has got one … though they do come in all shapes and sizes. You’ve got pretty ones, ugly ones, fat ones, skinny ones, bouncy ones, tight ones, strong ones and weak ones … but we’ve all got one. Just because we have one, doesn’t make us an expert on the subject of butts … derriere, bootie, bottom, tush, cheeks, buns, fanny, behind, rear end, rump, gluteus maximus ... or Forest Gump’s descriptive term, “The Buttocks”.

I feel we all need to be extremely cautious when it comes to accepting the OPINIONS of others about people we have never met. Magazine editors might be more interested in selling magazines than in giving a true assessment of the person their journalists are writing about. Sensationalism is a type of editorial bias in mass media to increase readership numbers. The title alone can prove extremely hurtful and misleading, along with instantly and wrongly labeling the person being written about.

Just as sensational headlines sucker us into accepting false premises, we must not let other people’s OPINIONS establish false premises about individuals. Unless the OPINION is coming from someone you trust and have known for years, who has no axe to grind, no agenda, no reason to bear false witness … always be cautious as to what you accept as fact about anyone. I have found that many times if someone isn't who we want them to be, we get annoyed. If we can’t understand how they are so good at what they do … we get angry, irritated, envious, and/or bitter. There are a lot of people out there who seem to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives … and will share their OPINION about that … yet they don’t have a clue how to live their own life.

Some people might think that the actions of a focused person are rude. Other people might think the actions of a disciplined, dedicated person were conceited, smug, distant, cold or aloof. What's even worse is that these same people decide who someone else is and share that OPINION, when they don't even know who they are themselves. Just because it is written in the paper, a book, or magazine … or seen on TV or the Internet … doesn’t make it true and factual. I have also found that those who gossip a lot seem to get things wrong a lot. If you need to find out what a person is all about, do your OWN RESEARCH.

If You Want an Opinion You Can Trust
Make It Your Own