Internet hate made me fearless

There are a LOT of people on the internet who really, really don’t like me. Go search my name on Reddit or Twitter if you want… there are hundreds of comments like these (and much worse).

On the one hand, it’s kind of hilarious how upset people get at a stranger on the internet simply for having a difference of opinion.

And I’ll be honest, it definitely got to me.

I was so taken aback the first few times it happened, and I foolishly tried reasoning with them (which obviously only made it worse, and made me even more frustrated).

And it’s still not fun when it happens: even though I know these people are mentally unstable losers and intellectually I don’t care what they think, it's still draining and it can take the wind out of my sails when there’s another wave of hate.

But here’s the thing:

I’ve grown SO much from it, in ways I never expected.

Here’s how:

Back when I had a 9-5, I used to be scared to speak up in meetings. I was worried that I might upset someone, and if I upset someone I’d be on the express bus to getting fired.

(and I wasn’t wrong to be worried about that)

But now that I’ve been raked over the coals literally thousands of times by the internet, I’m pretty fearless about just saying what I think when I’m talking with my clients.

At first, I wasn’t sure what would happen, but I just went for it.

And what’s amazing is that unlike when I was in the corporate world, I’m REWARDED for speaking up.

I think this is why:

When you’re talking from a place of (justified) confidence, it shows. People can tell that you know your shit, and they listen.

(mostly… some people will always be stubborn 😅)

So getting dragged by the internet isn’t fun in the moment, but it will make you more confident than you ever believed you could be.

Growth is usually a little uncomfortable, right?

The other thing is that it made me realize the worst case scenario (upsetting thousands of people on the internet) really isn’t that big of a deal.

When you put your unfiltered opinions out there, you’re going to upset someone.

So what?

You’re never going to get it as bad as I have, and I can tell you from firsthand experience that these people DO NOT MATTER.

Every year I get more haters, and every year I make more money.

The opinions of negative people are IRRELEVANT. Ignore them.

For every one of these angry weirdos, there’s 100 more people who love what you’re saying… THOSE are the people who matter.

The point:

If you’re nervous to start building a personal brand because you’re afraid of judgmental losers coming for you, please… do NOT let that hold you back.

I promise you these people mean NOTHING.

Don’t let them have power over you.

Life’s too short to let these people control what you say and do.

Bonus: Someday you can have a bunch of funny screenshots like these saved on your phone 😅

PS - Here’s the part where I try to sell you something… if you want to talk about growing on LinkedIn or YouTube, reply to this email or set up a call here!