Ignore Your Mentor and Trust Your Grit

The kiln doesn't give a damn about your market research or your mentor's latest LinkedIn "insight." If you keep opening the door to check if the glaze is trending, you're just going to crack the pot. We’ve reached a point in entrepreneurship where "pivoting" has become a euphemism for a lack of spine. Everyone is so obsessed with being agile that they’ve forgotten how to be solid. If you know the structural integrity of your idea is sound, then stop letting people talk you into watering it down for the sake of a quick exit.

At this stage of life, we should know better. We've seen the cycles. We've seen the "next big things" turn into digital dust. True growth isn't about fluttering toward every shiny object; it’s about the stubborn, messy work of staying the course. Determination is often mistaken for arrogance by people who don't have a vision of their own. They call it "market feedback," but often it's just noise meant to make you fit into a box that’s easier for them to sell.

Psychologically, this constant shifting is a nightmare for your internal locus of control. Self-determination theory suggests that humans need a sense of autonomy to actually thrive and innovate. When you outsource your decision-making to a board of advisors or a "pivot" culture, you effectively surrender your competence. You become a passenger in your own theatre. Real innovation requires the psychological safety to be "wrong" in the eyes of the public for a long time before you’re proven right. You need to keep your hands on the wheel, even when the backseat drivers are screaming for a U-turn.

The heat of this summer reminds me of working in a studio with no ventilation—sweat dripping into the clay, back aching, but you don't stop because the form is finally emerging. You have to be the one who decides when the work is done. If you're building something that actually matters, you’re going to have to be the most stubborn person in the room. Growth isn't a straight line, and it certainly isn't a series of sharp left turns every time a mentor gets cold feet. Stand your ground. Honour the original sketch. The world has enough chameleons; it needs a few more stones.

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