Three Things to Remember When the Haters Show Up
02 Nov 2025 #miscFuture me:
Yesterday I woke up to a comment on a coding post we reposted on Medium. It said, “you are just marketing your book.” It included some profanity, but I’m not adding it here.
I just launched Street-Smart Coding last week. And yes, I’ve been promoting it by turning every post into a sales rep. Hey, singers promote their concerts and writers go on podcast tours, right?
Here are three reminders for you, future me:
#1. Remember the 30/30/30 rule
Keep in mind that no matter what you do:
- 30% will love it
- 30% will hate it
- 30% won’t even care
Well, technically it’s 33.333333%, but you get the point. That commenter was just part of the second 30%.
And good or bad publicity is still publicity. That hateful comment was signaling Mr. Algorithm to promote your post even more.
#2. Remember why you started
There’s a hill to die on:
Either you sell something (even a $1 pdf) or sell your time in a 9-5. You’re not going to like one of the two.
And if you choose to stay away from a 9-5, you’ll have to embrace sales and marketing. You have to be your own sales team.
#3. Fight your negativity bias
A single negative comment will make you forget the thousands of positive ones.
Open your victories file and your book sales. That’s your first 30%. Show up for them. Here’s a small victory…and another one here.
You spent years building somebody else’s dream and business. Now build yours. Don’t be ashamed of promoting your own work. Influencers and millionaire writers do it. You can do it too.
Let them talk. You keep doing your work.
Read this as many times as you need.