I don't care what people told you, be difficult
Keep your mouth shut. Put your head down. Embrace the grind.
The first bits of advice you’ll receive after graduating college. From who? Just about everybody. Coworkers, managers, friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, parents.
I did well conforming to these rules (and you will too), but there’s a stop limit. “Put your head down” isn’t wisdom, it’s an order meant to keep you in a box. Don’t get in the way. Don’t be loud. Do what we’re paying you to do and no one gets hurt.
Don’t be difficult.
Nonsense.
I’m reminded of Raymond Parks, the husband of Rosa Parks, who nearly came undone upon Rosa’s return from jail. Head down, sobbing into the kitchen table. “The white folks will kill you, Rosa!” He said begging her to stop.
But Rosa had already made her decision to fight, “If you think it will mean something to Montgomery and do some good, I’m happy to go along with it.”
People who care about you the most don’t want you challenging the status quo. You can sense their anxiety.
When you cancel a date to work on your side-hustle.
When you rearrange your life to focus on a new project.
When you speak up in a meeting full of superiors who don’t know your name.
Everyone likes someone who’s easy to work with, but difficult people change the world.