About this quote

Refusing to feed other people's judgments frees up time and energy you actually need. If someone spends effort critiquing your choices, that attention says more about them than about you. Do less explaining and more doing — set a boundary like muting, unfollowing, or changing the subject when criticism pops up. Ask yourself: what could you stop defending right now so you can focus on results?

When to use it

• At work: after I accepted the promotion and a couple of coworkers started gossiping, I shrugged and said, 'I let them think what they want' and went back to finishing the report.
• Family: at Thanksgiving when relatives kept prying about my relationship status, I glanced away and told my cousin, 'I let them think what they want,' then changed the topic.
• Money: when friends mocked my decision to save instead of splurge, I said, 'If they care that much about my budget, that's on them,' and stuck to the plan.
• Sport: after a teammate trash-talked me for changing training methods, I replied, 'Let them think what they want,' and kept working on my technique.