The fear of criticism or negative feedback is one of the things that I notice that seems to hold coaches back from being more visible on social media. However, there is a double dose of good news here.
Do you need to be visible online?
Firstly, you don’t need to be more visible on social media in order to create clients. Can it be helpful? Sure. I like spending time on social media, especially Facebook.
As you may have noticed, however, there are plenty of examples of coaches, who have full practices and are not very visible on social media.
Can criticism make you feel bad?
Secondly, criticism doesn’t have any power to make you feel bad. This is true no matter how much the opposite SEEMS to be true. Knowing this has helped me become increasingly visible online over the past few years. This despite being a chronic people pleaser, wanting people to like and approve of me and dreading negative feedback.
This morning I received a critical comment on a video on Youtube that I recorded 5 years ago. Back then, I was nervous about how people would receive my content as I had just started this group. I also knew that what I was sharing would have been helpful to me and that I would get better by simply doing more of it.
I was tempted to delete the comment but I have chosen to leave it up online. Years ago Steve Chandler told me that if I wanted to be a coach who was visible online then getting some criticism was part and parcel of that. We can’t be visible AND be universally loved no matter how “safe” we may play it. We don’t need to be loved, universally liked or approved of either and the more “safe” and pleasing you are, the less impactful your message.
You can do this
My message to you is – if I can overcome my own fear of criticism then anyone can…including you!
