A while ago, I wrote a post entitled The Impossibility of Making Everyone Happy. In it, I contended that introducing a new technology or system in an organization was bound to have detractors. You can’t make everyone happy, so don’t try.

I thought about that post lately as reviews have begin to trickle in for The New Small. The same tenet applies. For the most part, people have had largely positive things to say. I couldn’t help but chuckle, however, when two very smart people with whom I have personally spoken conveyed antithetical criticisms, literally on the same day. To paraphrase these two:

• Person A: The book has too much information. I can’t digest it.
• Person B: The book has too little information. I was looking for more.

Valid criticisms? I suppose. To each his own, right?

But does this give me pause? No, and it shouldn’t stop you from doing something creative either, whether it’s writing a book, making an album, or creating art.

Simon Says

Be creative for yourself. Be proud of what you have accomplished. Don’t look for reasons not to do something. Use your passion and the tools and technologies available today to make your individual statement, critics be damned. Be true to yourself and your vision and different to others. Hell, it worked for Rush.

And if you’re afraid of negative reviews or press, grow smaller ears.