We were taught as kids to respond to insults with “Stick and stone may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.”
That’s very charming but was invented during a time when there was no Internet, social media, cancel culture and the ability to anonymously sling your insults on Lucifer’s litterbox known as Reddit under the username 404backbonenotfound.
Of course, the saying is still largely true – but more so in the sentiment of not allowing such insults to cripple your confidence or push you into timidity, on your heels, begging forgiveness.
If you want to succeed in anything, you need to see every insult as an opportunity.
When Biden said that Trump supporters were garbage during a livecast, Trump donned a safety vest, wrapped a garbage truck with his logo, climbed in and held a press conference, asking reporters, “How do you like my truck?” When Bill Maher was invited to the White House to interview Trump, he brought a list of 60 insults he had made about him. When Maher presented the list to Trump, he grabbed a marker and signed it. When arrested, he took his mug shot and put it on mugs, t-shirts and other merchandise as a way of raising money for his campaign.
You don’t have to like him or his policies, but you gotta give him credit for being one tough S.O.B. who turns his enemies’ attacks into fuel. He is opportunistic about insults.
Wendy’s is known for its viciously funny tweet responses to haters. When someone tweeted, “My friends like Wendy’s but I don’t…what do I tell them?” Wendy’s responded, “Apologize for being wrong.”
When someone shared my Facebook post about selling the company, someone commented on the picture, saying, “As for the picture, it’s telling you to kiss her A$$ goodbye.” I replied with humor, saying, “…my ass is not a kissing booth, and HR said it’s a no-go now anyway, LOL.”
Another example: When I posted a story about our attempts to save a stray cat we found on the side of the road with two broken legs that sadly didn’t survive, I got ripped by a client for ending the article with “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.”
She was HOT that I was “bringing religion” into what should be strictly business. I didn’t hide from the hate, but posted her e-mail to me on Facebook where it went viral, with people commenting it must be difficult for her to drive down streets with churches on them…or stand in sunlight. Funny.
This is the way to deal with bullies and haters – with humor. They want to get a rise out of you. They want to hurt you. They want you to cower. Don’t do it.
As you grow your MSP, I promise you there will be haters and dissenters – and their numbers grow with your success. It’s said the higher you climb on the ladder of success, the more your ass is a target for those below you.
Some clients use their ability to write bad reviews as a means of extortion. Many competitors will encourage or outright pay people to write bad reviews about you online. Employees can be passive-aggressive, destroying you behind your back and creating a bad stink, sowing dissension in the ranks and even among customers. I’ve had ALL of this happen to me.
Obviously you can’t respond to ALL of this with humor. Sometimes you have to be aggressive and land the metaphorical punch in the bully’s nose, cutting out the cancer and correcting outright lies. But never take it onboard and let it keep you up at night.
As Daymond John taught me, rap artists know how to use their haters for profit. And when a troll or bully thinks they’ve won because they were able to land a nasty comment and hurt you, try to reply with humor…or a rant, like I do, turning a negative into a big win and a way of connecting with your audience.
Here’s my new saying, “Your sticks are no match for my stones.”
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