We've all heard the saying.

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion."

But it's not quite true, is it?

An opinion isn’t a birthright, and it ain't a free pass to the conversation. It’s not something you wake up with, fully formed, just because you have an internet connection.

An opinion—one that matters, one that holds weight—is built. It’s earned through effort, through knowledge, through curiosity. And yet, we’ve spent years handing them out like participation trophies. “Have your say!” we tell people. “Speak your truth!”

...as if the simple act of expressing a thought is enough to make it valuable.

A gut feeling is not the same as expertise. A hunch is not the same as research. Reading a headline is not the same as understanding a concept. But in our rush to make sure everyone has a voice, we’ve confused noise for nuance, volume for value.

When opinions are easy, they’re cheap. And when they’re cheap, they drown out the signal, the opinions shaped by study, by experience, by real work. The opinions that come from people who’ve done the thinking, who’ve put in the time, who understand the cost of being wrong.

Ironically, those are the people who hesitate. Because they understand complexity, they understand the weight of the moment, they who know what they don’t know, they see more than just the easy answer. They feel the responsibility.

The loudest voices in the room often belong to the people who’ve done the least work. And we’ve let them take up all the oxygen.

The fix? It’s simple, but it's not easy. That's half the point.

Be curious. Be open. Do the work. If you don’t know, say so. And if your opinion isn’t built on effort, consider whether the world really needs to hear it.

Because an opinion that matters isn’t a trophy for showing up.

It’s something you build.

Something you earn.