13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do_ Take Back Your Power, Embrace Change, Face Your Fears, and Train Your Brain for Happiness and Success ( PDFDrive )

someone when you’re feeling overly emotional. Instead, distract yourself
with an activity, like walking or reading, to help you calm down. Getting
your mind off what’s bothering you, even for a few minutes, can help you
calm down so you can think more rationally.
EVALUATE FEEDBACK CRITICALLY
Not long before she released an album that sold over ten million copies,
Madonna received a rejection letter from the president of Millennium Records
that said, “The only thing missing from this project is the material.” Had
Madonna allowed that letter to define her singing and songwriting abilities, she
might have given up. But fortunately, she kept looking for opportunities in the
music industry. Soon after that rejection letter, she landed a record deal that
launched her career. Within a couple of decades, Madonna was recognized by
the Guinness Book of World Records as the bestselling female recording artist of
all time. She holds numerous other records, including the top-touring female
artist of all time, and she’s ranked second on the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time
Top Artists—second only to the Beatles.
Almost every successful person likely has a similar story of rejection. In 1956,
Andy Warhol tried to give one of his paintings to the Museum of Modern Art,
but they declined to accept it even for free. Fast-forward to 1989, and his
paintings had become so successful that he earned his own museum. The Andy
Warhol Museum is the largest museum in the United States dedicated to a single
artist. Clearly, everyone has an opinion, but successful people don’t allow one
person’s opinion to define them.
Retaining your power is about evaluating feedback to determine if it has any
validity. While criticism can sometimes open our eyes to how others perceive us
so we can make positive change—a friend points out a bad habit, or a spouse
helps you see your selfish behavior—at other times, criticism is a reflection of
the critic. Angry people may choose to offer harsh criticism quite regularly just
because it relieves their stress. Or individuals with low self-esteem may feel
better about themselves only when they put other people down. So it’s important
to really consider the source before making any decisions about how you want to
proceed.