I got bashed
Recently, I wrote a blogpost titled The Government should pay entrepreneurs a very low salary to save the economy. I wasn’t saying that this plan is 100% correct, but it seemed logical to me, so I wanted to put it out there to see what people think about it. At least I had some support from a Stanford Researcher and an Ex Venture Capitalist and BCG Consultant.
After a while, this professor from Belmont University Jeff Cornwall wrote a blogpost about how terrible and out of my mind I was. Shortly after, a lot of his readers started mass commenting on my blog and his blog saying they are “disgusted” and that I’m promoting socialism (note: I am not suggesting the government fund those who are unproductive…I am suggesting the government make it possible for more people to create jobs and enhance a form of capitalism).
What do you do when that happens?
11 Tips to turn the table around and make bashers supporters
- Thank them for their time and effort
- Apologize for things that you clearly did wrong or by mistake
- Address every single one of them
- Be polite
- Ask them to specify the things they are bashing about (most will just throw vague insults without clarifying why they are insulting)
- For those who actually explain, clarify all the misunderstandings or misconceptions
- Address your fundamental differences, but don’t be an jerk about it
- NEVER become emotional
- Stay cheerful
- Thank them at the end and encourage more constructive criticism
- Don’t be shady
I have seen forum threads that were pretty much devoted to bashing me anonymously. I pretty much used these exact tips and dealt with the “trolls” straight on. After 2 long replies addressing every single person, I ended up with only supporters in the forum and the bashers almost felt embarrassed to say more (since the most 2nd response addressed their first reply attempt)
Gary Vaynerchuck also had a crisis where his website got hacked and redirected to a porn site. He also managed it in a way that helped him gain more followers that respect him.
Your reputation is one of your biggest assets. It’s your job to guard it with your life.
