SOCIAL MEDIA IS RAISING A BUNCH OF PUSSIES WHO CAN'T HANDLE REJECTION! OH WAIT, I MEANT FOR THAT TO BE A QUESTION??
Two things before I begin:
I hate the word pussy << but it's necessary for this post.
I am not calling one of my clients or past clients a pussy, but this post was inspired by somebody I was around last week << be offended if you want.
Ok, the question of the day: Is social media raising a bunch of 'p words' that can't handle rejection?? I believe it is ... but how could they help it!? In this day and age (no, I am not 80 years old - I am in fact 30-something) where your 'friends' are people you've never met and if you're having a bad day you can post it and get a bunch of 'hearts' and hugs all over your feed it must be hard to actually deal with the sh*t that life can bring. And when I say DEAL WITH THE SH*T << I mean: face it, think about it, and come up with a solution for the next time it happens. Here's a little story for you ...
I was at a 'let's just call it a thing' last week-ish and there was a person there who had been rejected to help with a 'job' they wanted - that was given to me. This person is probably in their 20's and to them I am probably an 'old hag who is drying up' ... I was at the 'thing' doing my job - kicking ass, coming up with ideas, doing what my client is paying me to do. The one who was rejected wouldn't even look at me << wouldn't say 'hi', wouldn't be pleasant, wouldn't even look up when I was talking TO THEM and standing 4 feet away. They were pouting. Why??? Because they had been rejected. Something they had created was decided that it wasn't a fit for the direction of the project. And this person burned a bridge when what they could have done was LEARNED from the situation.
Is that crazy?? When I was making my way through the wedding industry just starting out I begged for opportunities to be mentored by people who had 'been there' and 'done that' ... I volunteered my time to work at events and weddings that were in the target market I wanted to reach. I asked people their opinion about things I created, logos I had, and websites I used for my business because I WANTED TO KNOW << not because I was fishing for compliments or wanted someone to say how awesome I was.
Right now you can post an image on Instagram and get 20 likes right away (depending on your following). You can get 20 likes or more even if the image you post is a piece of hideous sh*t that nobody would want to look at! This is bad for someone just starting out ... and why??? It makes you think you are amazing - that everything you create is gorgeous - that people love what you create. And so what happens when someone comes along and tells you that it's not so great?? It's shocking to your system! You get angry! This person couldn't possibly be correct because everyone on social media LOVES IT OODLES AND OODLES and my mom tells me that I'm a superstar! << no.
If you are just starting out my suggestion is to leave your attitude at home and try to learn from people who have done this. Am I saying that you have to go to the 'days of the caveman' and learn from people who haven't embraced the current way that business goes in this industry?? No. But don't burn bridges with people you could truly learn from! There is a reason that people get far - a reason people are successful. They probably worked really hard, established relationships with all the right people, and it's even possible they know more than you - wink, wink.
Is social media important!? YES!! 100000% YES!! Don't ever stop using it! Should it give you a boost of confidence when you get 3 million likes on an image in your feed? YEAH! Should that be enough? NO!! Use that boosted confidence to create new relationships, get better at something you might not be great at yet, go after something you have wanted for a long time ... don't use it to grow a nasty personality and step on the people who could help lift you up.
XO~ Heather
