Even though we’ve been told “you can’t please everyone,” we hold onto the idea because it’s safe. It’s much less vulnerable to try to please other people than to expose what’s important to us or, even more threatening, intend to please ourselves.
The thing is, there’s really no business of pleasing. It’s a false storefront and it doesn’t scale. We get bought into the idea because it’s natural to want approval and it’s satisfying to “make other people happy.” We get the thrill of pleasing one person and think the thrill must expand if we could do this with everyone. But the thrill of pleasing is short-term, unless we are also intent on satisfying ourselves.
A more lucrative business is the business of going after what we want. It’s not necessarily as bullish as it sounds. Especially if you started in the business of pleasing, you can trust you’ll stay conscious of the impact you have on other people. You’ll continue to care about their desires, wants, and needs, but you’ll do it without making it your full-time job.