What’s an unpopular opinion you have?
I’m sure you do. We all do, right?
But, how often do you vocalise it?
I wonder if it’s because our online worlds have become increasingly polarised and social media sites stoke division and argument, that we become fearful of expressing opinions that run counter to “acceptable narratives”.
You see people in the public eye being barraged by language and reactions that would make someone with even the toughest skin stop in their tracks. I also wonder, as an aside, how many of these comments are generated by AIs and put out there purely to drive clicks and create division.
It takes a special type of person to want to step into that fray every day.
My fear is the boiling online cauldron of the online world shapes a more extreme world.
People who love a fast, hot take become even hotter (without much thought)
People who prefer not to be shouted at online, become more agreeable or silent.
It’s this point I want to lean into: I fear our culture has become too obsessed with being agreeable.
That’s my first unpopular opinion.
In conversations and online I think we tend towards what’s acceptable to say. We sugar-coat, we soften, we nod when we don’t really agree. We run the risk of trading truth for comfort.
We’ve convinced ourselves that being likeable is more important than being honest. And in the process, we’ve become fluent in surface-level consensus and hopelessly rusty at disagreement.
The challenge with this is that disagreement. Real, curious, unfiltered disagreement is the path to solving hard problems. It’s the birthplace of insight, innovation, and actual connection. When someone says something that jolts you, even offends you a little, that’s the start of something interesting.
When we stop sharing what we really think, we don’t just lose our edge, we lose the chance to really make a difference.
My second Unpopular Opinion is that AI is making us more stupid.
It’s vaunted everywhere, as the essential must have thing. You can’t ignore it. For sure, I’ve written plenty about it myself.
I use AI regularly myself. But every time I use it, I notice something quietly alarming:
It takes the struggle out of thinking.
Much less wrestling with ideas. No more pacing the room or rewriting the same sentence ten times. The edge, the creative discomfort, disappears. Isn’t that where the gold used to live?
Some clever person once said, I don’t know what I think until I’ve written it.
I like that.
Writing is a brilliant way to think, to shape your ideas and thoughts. To read back and reflect on the nuance of the words. Does that convey the feeling, the message, the impression I want to give?
AI with it’s whip smart words can dazzle us with ideas and words with precision copy writing.
BUT, and it’s a big but, was that the sentiment you wanted to convey?
AI doesn’t just write for us. It starts to think for us. And when it does, I worry that our thinkin muscles start to atrophy and we lose our edge.
I’m not against AI—I use it, but I’m wary of what we lose if we stop noticing what it’s replacing.
So there it is.
Two unpopular opinions. Two conversation starters.
Maybe it’s time to give some of your unpopular opinions airtime.
If we do and think the same as everyone else, we pretty much guarantee the same results as everyone else.
And that is the antithesis of going after Big Bold Goals.
Three Simple Experiments with Unpopular Opinions
2 Minute Experiment. Finish the Sentence
Finish this sentence without editing: “I know it’s unpopular, but I believe…” No filters. Just let it land.
5 Minute Experiment. Share it.
Say it out loud to someone. Use it explore some more challenging views and hear what someone else thinks of it.
20 Minute Experiment. Debate
Host a mini “Unpopular Opinion Roundtable.” Three people. One belief each. No arguments. Just listening. Maybe a few surprised laughs. Maybe a deep breath of relief.