The Importance Of Forming Your Own Opinions

In 1950, sociologist David Riesman developed a model to describe three types of individuals based on how they develop their opinions, values, and expectations of the world: tradition-directed, inner-directed, and other-directed. In this episode, Dan Sullivan explains what these three models look like, why entrepreneurs are more likely to bet their futures on their inner values, and how you can work on remaining true to yours.

Here's some of what you'll learn in this episode:

• The three types of individuals, and where most entrepreneurs fit.
• Why you should be mindful of who and what gets your attention.
• The importance of personal integrity in the face of an overwhelming amount of information and distractions.
• How to tune out other people’s opinions and judgments.

Show Notes:

Tradition-directed: Someone who grew up with a certain set of values and expectations, whether based on religion or politics or community, that have been passed down to them over generations.

Other-directed: Someone whose values are determined by external factors, like other people’s opinions and judgments.

Inner-directed: Someone who forms their own set of beliefs and values.

A finite resource: You only have so much attention. Be mindful of who and what you’re giving it to.

Not getting distracted: It’s important to stay true to who you are and what you value, even if nobody agrees with you.