What happens when someone uncompromising comes up against the world?
They lose, of course. That indomitable spirit, thinking to impose its will, will be snuffed out in its first breath. It will be bent by indifference. It was not meant to be personal.
The world is hard. In a will of the unyielding, the world wins.
This is why everyone makes little compromises to survive. Small stuff, like delaying a household repair. Staying in instead of going out. Stifling a remark, or paying more to avoid exercises in futility. Letting go of things, and thoughts, and people. It's all compromise, and nobody likes a compromise. Compromises leave everyone unhappy, not a soul getting what they want.
But since everybody wants what they want without reservation, compromise offers a third way. It's the survival button for all human affairs, and one that every opposing side wishes didn't exist. Without compromise, everyone could be true to their heart and instincts. They would be free, before they were destroyed.
Compromise means what is gained and what is lost. Every hard decision, and there are so many hard decisions, is a new piece to give away of oneself. Every tiny sliver is a sacrifice. Each gain pales in comparison to its loss. Until eventually the gains are so small, and all of your history feels lost, and you're compromising for the single privilege of surviving. At this point, the uncompromiser breaks. There is always a level lower, and when the descent is too hard to bear, sometimes compromise becomes less intolerable. There is no reward for standing up against a thresher, beyond the making of meat.
Have firm convictions, they'll say. Don't compromise on your beliefs.
They should add: except to the world. Compromise for the world. In its path, it does not care if you yield.