Hi friends! I hope you are all doing well. I’ve gotten to an interesting point in my life where I spend a lot of time formulating, writing/filming, and crafting my opinions. I’ve always been someone who was very forthright with my opinions but the last 2 years have taken it to a new level. I write several movie reviews a week on my Disney blog, weekly Family Movie Night posts on ldsblogs.com (which it would make my day if any of you commented on those posts), video posts on my youtube channel and regular posts like this one over on rotoscopers.com. Here’s a video I did this week where I summarized my opinions on 20 or more movies!

I think perhaps because I am so free with my opinion some people don’t realize the thought and energy that goes into it. Sure I have the off the cuff comment on twitter or facebook that isn’t thought out but when I put pen to paper (or fingers to keypad but that doesn’t sound as good) I’ve thought a lot about what I am going to say. In general I try to be positive, even when talking about something I don’t like very much. I try to see what the creators were going for and give them some credit if it is at all possible (some people like Adam Sandler make that very hard).

Particularly with certain properties it’s a nerve-wracking thing to put out an opinion, especially when you know it is going to be unpopular. Do you think I want to be the one person in the world who doesn’t LOVE the Dark Knight (calm down I like it just don’t think it is perfect like others)? No I don’t but I can’t lie and say I love something when I don’t. It’s a vulnerable position to be in and all I can hope is that I explain my point of view well enough to show it is a valid opinion and not just trolling.

There are moments when I want to just abandon it all and go back to viewing things for my own pleasure alone. Just having my own weird opinions and keeping them to myself but if I did that I would lose the value of introducing others to things I love, which is tremendous. Plus, I wouldn’t be as passionate about what I love because it would never be challenged (you learn something through defending your tastes in a way).

Anyway, it can be tough to put yourself out there for the world to see.  That’s why today when I got a compliment it meant a lot to me. My friend told me a rotoscoper fan told her ““P.S Hiring Rachel Wagner was genius. She’s such a good prolific writer and really knows her stuff!”. I don’t work for rotoscopers- just volunteer, but it felt sooooo good to hear a compliment on my writing. It really brightened my day and made me feel appreciated.

I then shared on twitter how a compliment can brighten your day and I got more compliments. I was on cloud 9 you could say!

It reminded me that it is easy to focus on the things you disagree with a person on- especially when he or she is putting out her opinion a lot like I do. But we must remember that person is human too and a little compliment goes a long way in making a person, even an opinionated person, feel valued and loved. Someone may seem confident and outspoken but trust me they are not without insecurities and fear. Letting them know you appreciate what they do does not go on deaf ears. I can promise you that.

So I challenge you to find the opinionated person in your life and pay them a compliment. It’s hard sometimes to put your opinions out there and it feels so good to know we are loved and valued because of it.