Standing alone for something you believe in feels cold for a minute, then it feels like solid ground.

The first moments of holding a position with no company are genuinely unpleasant, because the discomfort is social and immediate while the reason for it is abstract. What replaces that, once the moment passes, is a steadiness that does not depend on who agreed. You end up with something to stand on that nobody can withdraw.

When the room tilts one way this week and you do not, say so once, plainly, then stop arguing. You are not required to convince anybody. Sit in the awkwardness for a few minutes and notice what is left once it clears.