“The first great lesson which the college graduate should learn is the lesson of work rather than of criticism. Criticism is necessary and useful; it is often indispensable; but it can never take the place of action, or be even a poor substitute for it. The function of the mere critic is of very subordinate usefulness. It is the doer of deeds who actually counts in the battle for life, and not the man who looks on and says how the fight ought to be fought, without himself sharing the stress and the danger.”
Theodore Roosevelt wrote those words in 1894 for The Atlantic (though some historical evidence suggests he spoke the words previously, perhaps to a college graduation class). TR is known for his more famous “critic” quote, a cousin of sorts to this statement; the famous “Man in the Arena” quote graces my wall, was given in a 1910 speech in Paris. Here, we can see that Roosevelt held this sentiment about being a “doer of deeds.”
To succeed in college, in business, in life, we must take action. To sit and wait or to merely exist is to sadly, only, take up space. Certainly we should hear our critics for at times they see a blindspot that we cannot. But to sit and wait only on the critic is to miss multiple opportunities that only emerge as you start moving forward.