When Doing the Opposite Leads to Success

Question and Thought for the Day March 7, 2025

Question of the Day: Have you ever succeeded by doing the exact opposite of what you were told?

Thought of the Day: The opposite of a good idea might also be a good idea.

There’s a funny thing about good ideas—they don’t always play by the rules. In fact, sometimes the opposite of a good idea turns out to be just as brilliant.

We’re trained to follow conventional wisdom, listen to the experts, and do what’s “proven” to work. But what if the real magic happens when you go against the grain? What if the best way forward isn’t just a different path—but the exact opposite of the one you were told to take?

Think about some of the biggest success stories:

• Amazon started by losing money on purpose. Everyone said a company can’t survive without profits, yet Jeff Bezos doubled down on growth first, profits later.
• The Wright brothers ignored scientific consensus. Experts said heavier-than-air flight was impossible. Wilbur and Orville didn’t just tweak existing ideas—they flipped them on their head.
• Netflix killed late fees instead of increasing them. Blockbuster was making a fortune charging people for overdue rentals. Netflix saw an opportunity and built a subscription model that put their competition in the grave.
  

Of course, doing the opposite isn’t always the right answer, but it raises an important question: Are you stuck following rules that don’t serve you?

Have You Ever Succeeded by Doing the Exact Opposite?

We’ve all had moments where ignoring advice turned out to be the smartest move. Maybe you took a job everyone said was a terrible idea, and it led to the best career decision of your life. Maybe you bet on yourself when others told you to play it safe. Maybe you stopped following the “right way” and built something better your own way.

Success often comes from knowing when to break the rules—and sometimes, flipping the script entirely.

What’s a time when you went against the advice you were given and it worked out? Drop a comment—I’d love to hear your story.