I don't agree.

Within the wall of noise you may find warnings or other words of worth. And it does not take much effort to dismiss people's discouragement.

One post says call me out and another one says don't listen to your detractors. Which is it?

Being held to your word isn't listening to detractors--it's called being accountable.

How do you know you're running for the right reasons if you don't listen to outside opinion? Let the noise blur into a solid wall of sound? No. Take criticism for what it's worth. Utilize the constructive, disregard the destructive. But in order to do this, you have to interpret the sounds in the first place.

Have you people ever actually been in a race? Good lord, I run track myself at UNC Wilmington and he's making a fantastic analogy. Yes, everything becomes a wall of sound but you don't lose the information. I can pick out the voice of my coach, teammates, and family while racing. Their cheering and encouragement drives me harder. My coaches instruction, I follow.

In reality its the same. You can pick out the constructive criticism, but the destructive you just let go of.

If you start a race without knowing your reason your a fool. Its to win!