Some people I spoke with recently were freaked out over the fact that they either got some unsubscribes from their email list or they received negative comments from people in their audience.

Talking to them made me reflect on my early days when I was first building my business, and on one incident in particular that I remember vividly.

I was at a conference. This was way back in 2004 and I was just starting to build my audience; I think I had maybe a few hundred people on my email list at the time.

After emailing my list that morning, almost immediately a few people unsubscribed.

Maybe you’ve been through this and responded differently, but this was my first unsubscribe and I was hypersensitive to it.

It hit me right in the heart.

 

 

I remember coming down from my hotel room down to the main lobby and where the event was and running into a friend of mine named Matt. Matt looked at me and instantly was like, “Dude, what’s wrong?”

Because he could see it in my face. I looked like somebody had just like stabbed me in the heart.

I responded, “Man, I just got an unsubscribe from my email list.”

Matt gave me a strange look and said, “Wait a minute. You got an unsubscribe and this is why you’re so upset?”

I replied, “Yeah, man. I don’t know why they would’ve unsubscribed. I just don’t get it.”

So I was suprised when Matt responded with, “Dude, an unsubscribe is a really good thing.”

“Dude, an unsubscribe is a really good thing.”

I was like, “What are you talking about? No it’s not.”

He’s like, “Yes, it is. Look, if you’ve got an unsubscribe, think of it as like a cleansing process. They’re just somebody who has said, ‘You know what, this stuff isn’t right for me,’ and that’s okay. Because now you’ve got a smaller, tidier list of people who are really into everything that you’re sharing.”

It was an amazing lesson for me because it gave me permission to continue being myself and sharing my message.

Now this is a lesson I try to pass on to others who are having similar experiences.

As business owners, we need to have a thick skin. Not everybody is going to agree with our message or care for what we have to offer.

And that’s okay.

A saying of an early mentor of mine that stuck with me is, “Love me or hate me, there’s no money in the middle.”

 

 

When you stay true to your message and create this kind of divide, it’s actually a really good thing because the people that hang around are going to be true supporters.

I would much rather have a small list of people who love what I have to share than a huge list of people who are indifferent to my message.

Because here’s the thing: When it comes to your marketing, you have to believe.

If you’re sharing content, you have to believe in your message. If you’re selling, you have to believe in your product.

Nobody wants to engage with somebody who isn’t confident in what they’re sharing. Nobody wants to buy from somebody who isn’t confident in what they’re selling.

Would you want to go into surgery with a doctor who was hesitant like that? Heck no. Would you want get into a plane with a pilot who was hesitant about their ability to get to the destination? Heck no.

You have to share your message and your products with confidence. If that sense of confidence turns some people off, that’s totally fine.

What you’re doing is you are getting closer and closer to the people who will really benefit from what you have to share.

If you get unsubscribes it’s a good thing. It just means you’re getting more and more dialed in to the few people who you can really help and serve.

Share with confidence. Create that divide. Identify the people who are truly engaged with what you have to share. Focus on those people and how you can continue to serve them.

You will grow a far bigger business focusing on the people who absolutely love you than you ever will trying to please the people who don’t.


 

 

As an entrepreneur, it is CRITICAL for you to guard your confidence.

You’re doing things that most people don’t do.

You’re out blazing new trails and going places that most people aren’t willing to go.

When you’re experimenting with new ideas and trying new things, there are always going to be CRITICS and people who will try to bring you down.

Because guess what? It’s easier for people to bring you down than to raise their game up to your level.

Internet Trolls

When you are an entrepreneur, you have to guard your confidence.

I’m going to give you three tips on how to do this.

But, before I do, let me just share how this all came about:

Recently, my wife and I were having dinner with some friends.

One of our friends, knowing that I was preparing for my own product launch, asked a question:

“What do you think about doing your own launch versus all the launches that you’ve done for somebody else? Do you feel any difference?”

I was like, “Heck yeah, I do.”

Because I’ve been behind the scenes helping strategize and develop launches for many, many people. For example, during the last year of my partnership with Michael Hyatt, we did four seven figure launches throughout the year.

It was a huge year, but doing a launch for somebody else is totally different than doing it for yourself, and here’s why:

When you do it for yourself, there is a ton of mental baggage.

What do I mean by mental baggage?

I’m talking about self-doubt and limiting beliefs and all that fun stuff.

There’s all kinds of mental baggage that we carry when it’s our own product, our own course, our own membership, our own launch, whatever it is.

We have to guard our confidence because, if we don’t, it’s very, very easy to get derailed.

When you’re trying new things, you’re going to have people who cast all kinds of doubts. You’re going to have people who throw sticks and stones as a way of projecting their OWN mental baggage.

I’ve released several videos sharing my views on business and entrepreneurship, and recently somebody left a comment.

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He wrote:

“I didn’t even watch the video to know that this is nothing more than a travel blogger who comes from a rich wealthy background and that’s why they’re able to do what they’re doing.”

I was like what? Dude, obviously you didn’t watch the video because (a) I’m not a travel blogger (b) I definitely did not come from a wealthy background. Everything I’ve created, I earned, and it’s because I had great people around me who supported and believed in me, but I started everything from scratch.

His comment annoyed me, and I had to remind myself that comments like this happen all the time. When you are sharing a message, product or service with the world, haters and trolls are absolutely inevitable.

It’s not your job to combat the trolls. All you need to worry about is guarding your confidence.

Here are three ways to do it:

3-ways-to-guard-your-confidence

 

1) Have a clear strategy.

When you have a clear strategy, it is very hard for you to get derailed because you know exactly what your next steps are.

I see entrepreneurs who stumble because they don’t know what it is that they’re going to be doing next or they don’t have a clear strategy and what happens is that when somebody casts a little bit of doubt their way, they second guess themselves and then they backtrack and then now they’re completely off the rails.

Get clear on your strategy so can focus on simply executing.

 

2) Have supportive voices in your life.

Being an entrepreneur isn’t easy.

You’re going to have your ups and our downs, and when you have your downs, you need people who can bring you right back up.

There are two sides to this coin:

One, seek out those supportive voices.

Look to family, friends, mentors, mastermind partners – whoever – who can help coach you and support you and encourage you.

And be that supportive voice for others!

Don’t just vocalize but demonstrate your support by taking ACTION.

This doesn’t need to be a huge gesture. Just reaching out to show your support is enough. In fact, when I’m finished here on my way home, there’s somebody that I’m going to send a voice message to because I just listened to their podcast and it was amazing.

Supportive voices are incredibly important. Seek them. Be one.

 

3) Know your “why?”

As in, why did you become an entrepreneur in the first place? Why did you start your business?

When you are super clear on your why, that’s like the guiding star that keeps you focused.

When I first started out, my why was simple: to provide a better life for myself and my family.

But as I started experiencing some success and discovering the impact my business could have, I found another why.

My wife and I started a charity where we build schools in Kenya. At the time of writing this, we’ve built eight schools, and two are currently in construction.

So the more money I make, the more I can contribute to that project, and that motivates me daily.

When you get clear on your why, people can say what they want and they can try to derail you, but none of that matters because you have complete confidence in the path you’re on.

 

guard-your-confidence

 

Summary:

  1. Have a clear strategy.

  2. Have supportive voices (and be a supportive voice, too).

  3. Know your “why?”

It’s not easy being an entrepreneur. But you and I, we’re the ones making things happen.

Entrepreneurs have the power to change the world and that’s why I love and believe in entrepreneurship so much.

Keep your confidence up. The world will thank you for it.

 

Your turn: What do you do to guard your confidence? Let me know in the comments below.