"The second rule is to embrace your unpopular opinions with the knowledge and grace that not everyone shares your point of view," she continued. This rule can be quite tough since we humans have a general tendency to want others to agree with us. After all, it makes us feel heard and valued.
However, following this guideline "starts with a promise to both give up convincing other people to buy into your less popular opinions and to stop shaming them for their own thoughts and actions."
After that, it’s all about trusting yourself. If you believe that some things are just not right, don’t be shy and share your views with others because, chances are, there are people out there just like you. According to Akbari, there is value in dissent. "There’s often truth at the fringes and insight in unpopular perspectives. Greatness comes neither from blindly following nor from knee-jerk rejecting."
"Many of our greatest historical figures held really, really unpopular opinions. They did stuff that made people cringe or even retaliate against them. Going against the grain takes guts. And that courage is admirable, even if we disagree with what they’re saying or doing—but only when executed with integrity from a place of personal honesty," she wrote.
