There are decisions in life that only you can make: Issues of career and purpose. Questions of values and love. Things that demand significant time or devotion - that steer the overall direction of your life.
Other people may offer input, but their contribution is just that: input. What you do with it is your call.
In career decisions, your parents may push you toward certain occupations.
In business decisions, your board and advisors may recommend certain actions.
In relationship decisions, your friends may have strong opinions about your partner.
In worldview decisions, your social, religious, and political circles each lay claim to truth.
Now in all these matters, you must own your decision. This is no time for consensus. There is no room for passivity or ambiguity. Should you quit your job to start a business? Should you marry the person you've been dating? If you have to ask, the answer is no. These decisions require you to be all in.
Whether you agree with other people or not, the final decision is yours alone.
Why? First, they have a limited understanding of your situation and priorities. Second, anyone can give advice, but you must live with the consequences. Third - and my focus here - it is to preserve your relationships.
I've watched many people chase their parents' dreams, rather than their own. They ended up not only hating their work but also resenting their parents.
I've known people who, due to their friends' disapproval, broke up with their partners. They regretted it in hindsight and those friendships became strained.
And I've met too many people who willfully followed questionable advice - not because they didn't know better but so that they had someone else to blame.
Understand why you follow certain guidance. Make choices with conviction. Accept the consequences, whatever may come. You cannot shirk this responsibility. You cannot wash your hands of the outcome. You cannot expect anyone else to run your life for you - or hold it against them should you fail.
Making intentional decisions may mean going against the advice of others. It's not selfish to pursue your own interests; often it's necessary for healthy relations. Yes, this requires courage and confrontation at times. But there's no way around it. Autopilot seldom takes you where you need to be in life.
Be accountable for your own decisions. For that is the mark of integrity, maturity, and leadership.