“It’s Not Your Business What Others Think of You” Is the Most Profound Wisdom You Can Learn — Here’s Why

I’m not sure when I first read or heard the mantra, “it’s none of your business what others think of you,” but I can tell you that it has been popping up in my newsfeed for a while now. I hear it on TikTok. I see it on memes on Instagram. I listened to an author the other day talking about her writing process on some podcast, and she mentioned it. It seems to me that the universe truly wants me to drill the meaning behind these words into my head.

“It’s none of my business what others think of me.” It sounds pretty simple at its core, right? But when I tried to put this into practice, I could immediately see how hard-wired my brain has become to obsess over what others do think of me.

You see, I’m a people pleaser. I’m an Enneagram number five. I’m an introvert. I’m all about shoving my emotions as far away from me as possible. I prize a complete lack of drama in my life — in fact, I break out in hives when I am forced into confrontations. I flop and flail in my head for days after I feel personally attacked by the comments of others. Me caring about the crap others think has always felt like my business. That is until it didn’t.

“What others think about you ain’t your business, sis,” a TikToker said while staring at the camera. It felt like she was talking directly to me. And I wondered, how do I genuinely and earnestly apply this wisdom to my life?