You might be wondering, "What the hell does that mean?" Well, for starters, I don't mean "crazy" in real clinical terms. I'm mean the colloquial "crazy" that everyone uses casually to insult others.

But what I'm referring to in the title above is how people will expect you to act and speak just like them and everyone else around them, and if you do things that are out of the ordinary, then they'll think you're crazy or weird, or that there's something wrong with you.

I've written before about how the naysayers can cause some of us to allow our personal development to screech to to a halt. And those are pretty much the folks I'm talking about, but it isn't just naysaying that's the focus of this article.

I'm also talking about common viewpoints held by the majority, and how they can scare us into not letting ourselves grow, or even have a different opinion.

Let me give you a simple, safe example based on my own experience. Maybe you've seen this before. I used to work in the music industry, so I would see or hear this a lot in conversation. Here goes: one guy really hates a certain band, and he says so around a few other people. But all of the other people disagree, and think that band is great. So they tell him that they disagree, and they all back each other up, and may even resort to name calling - following the old "strength in numbers" formula. What does the first guy do? He switches to "Well, I guess they're not that bad."

He backs down from his original stance because he wasn't strong enough to stand alone against the crowd. And, by the way, there are a lot of bands/musicians that we are expected to like or dislike based on the majority opinion. Not to mention movies, and books, and sports franchises, and almost everything else in the entertainment world.

But that's just the entertainment world. It can be a lot worse when it comes to something much more important like your personal growth, or your lifestyle choices, or your beliefs.

Let me give you a bigger example, if I may. You've probably seen whole political campaigns run on this practice. They all pretend to be one of the people - fitting in with regular folk - when no politician really does, let's be honest. I actually don't expect any politician to be regular folk, but they all pretend to be. They're pretending to be something they're not, and then they accuse the other candidate of not being one of the people. I don't understand how they can all be right, but it gets votes, and that's what matters. Your own true nature be damned.

And it's odd to me, because we often hear a lot of grandiose talk about being yourself, being an individual, being bold, standing up for yourself, etc. But really, if you talk plainly and say what's on your mind, then you get derided as a weirdo, a freak, an outsider, and probably offensive. Well, some of the greatest people in history were outsiders during their time, and have since been recognized as highly influential, and even heroes.

We look up to them as much now as they were looked down upon then.

And they were looked down upon for being different, and having opinions that others didn't agree with, but they changed the world because they had the strength to stand alone when they needed to.

Now, obviously, those are extreme examples, and no one's saying you have to change the world, but you understand my point.

But then the thing that really gets me is when someone tells you that you shouldn't try this personal growth stuff, such as moving into a different career or changing your eating habits or whatever, because they don't want you to be an outcast (i.e. different), as if they're trying to look out for you. They hide behind good intentions. But really, they're looking out for themselves. They don't want to be associated with one of those "weirdos", and they certainly don't want you to succeed in spite of their beliefs.

Why do you think that people who are different are so rarely welcome in most places? Because the common folk are scared of them, scared of anything different. They're stuck in their ways, and they're frightened that something might change.

Too many people want things to stay the way they are, or to even go back to the way they were, as if that were even possible. I got news for ya, things will never go back to the way they were. Things are always changing, and sometimes, believe it or not, for the better.

And the great irony is that everything that's common these days was once new, and most likely hated. And a lot of things today that are frowned upon will one day be common, and accepted by all. So what good does it do for anyone to fear it?

I recommend applying this logic to your personal growth. But, unfortunately, that means that sometimes you will have to stand alone. And that's one of the hardest things you will ever do.

But your success is counting on it. Good luck.

Mark Yarrobino is the administrator of http://www.learntochangeyourlife.com, a website designed to help its visitors find the best information and real world methods for improving whatever part of their lives they feel might need some help. Most of the information is provided in the form of articles and audio interviews with experts in the various fields of self help and personal development.