When we buy a home, many of us create nice-to-have and must-have lists to sort out our desires and priorities. This allows us to have plans that encourage tempering of emotions when the time comes for decisions to be made. It also allows us to consider and discuss with others our true preferences and biases before we make decisions.

Most of us do this when we buy a home. Most of us do this when we make other major purchases, when we plan vacations, and when we make important decisions such as selecting the place for higher education. 

We create these must-have and nice-to-have lists to attend to our interests and the interests of others near and dear to us.

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There is value in following a similar approach when we critique other people's performance.

If we feel compelled to express criticism, we should at least be considerate enough to reduce the quantity of it to the must-have items.

There's no need to express each and every piece of shortcoming. 

Instead, we can create the long list of our complaints/objections/grievances. Then we can sort and rank them in must-have and nice-to-have lists, much the same way we would do if we were determining the key criteria for a major purchase. Then we could select the most-important must-have. And, we could limit our criticism to that single item.

When it comes to delivering criticism it is better to conclude every little bit hurts rather than every little bit helps.

While I have not heard about studies to confirm this, common sense suggests the laying on of criticism-item after criticism-item yields diminishing returns. That assumes the desired return is persuading the criticized person to agree with the criticism.

On the other hand, if the goal is annoying, angering, or alienating the person being criticized then this Thought Post will not be helpful.

Some people buy in when other people suggest things will fail.

I choose to reject this buying into others' failure mindsets.

Some people doubt other people when they say things will succeed.

I choose to reject this buying into others' failure mindsets.

Wait...there's a pattern developing here...here's a pattern taking shape around the rejection of failure mindsets.

I don't think the pattern has been induced by rampant optimism. I am sure I didn't get both snippets for the optimism gene.

I don't think the pattern has been induced by personal biases...on the other hand, isn't that the exactly what a sufferer of Confirmation Bias or Overconfidence Effect would think!

In any event, I am familiar with both sides of the coin. I've been critical of ideas, both my ideas and other people's ideas. And, I have been enthused by ideas, both my ideas and other people's ideas. Like everyone who has lived and spent some time thinking while that happened, I have familiarity with a wide range of mindsets on the depressing-pessimistic-to-manic-optimistic continuum. 

My comfort zone is operating in the mid-range of that broad continuum. 

I see my ideas and views, whether they are positive or negative vis-a-vis other's views, as realistic.

So, when people make it clear they feel I am overly optimistic I choose to reject their opinion and I stick with my own.

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Shall we fail or shall we succeed?

Shall we buy in when others tell us we will fail?

Shall we buy in when others tell us we will succeed? 

It is all a matter of feelings, thought, and choice.

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Law of Attraction - some go way too far with that thinking.

Abundance versus Scarcity mindsets - tough to see value in joining the Scarcity side.

Thought Tweet #966 'To Do' lists often fail. Whereas 'To Do' + 'Why Do' = Success.

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

Thinking about interests, purpose, definite chief aim, definite purpose, and Simon Sinek's' 'Start With Why'...

If nothing else 'Why Do' provides context. That's the worst-case scenario. The best-case scenario is a buy-in on Values and Vision and Purpose.

Adding 'Why Do' to 'To Do'...well there's no downside...and much upside.