DON’T FEED THE TROLLS
Let’s have a little chat today about what to do when have the internet trolls, a confrontation with the number president of the mean girl committee or just anyone that wants to piss in your cheerios.
As I have been growing my audience and have had more exposure with the media outlets sharing my journey with this whole Tik Tok ban – I am getting in front of more people. Getting in front of more people means that there are going to be a lot more opinions. After one of my interviews with a local news station was published, people had a LOT to say. And they were not the kindest 😬
I’ve said this since day one, if you are going to be on the internet you’ve gotta have some thick ass skin because these trolls have moved out of their caves onto hide behind their computer or phone screens. This isn’t even just for the internet. We’ve all had to deal with these types of people at some point online and in real life and it’s not fun. If you want to hear me talk a little more about this, you can listen to my podcast episode here 🎙
What is the definition of an internet troll?
Some might say it’s a mythical creature that lives under a bridge and to others it’s 54-year-old women named Karen who thrives off of making someone else’s life miserable. But, the textbook definition is a person who posts inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community (such as a newsgroup, forum, chat room, or blog), with the intent of provoking readers into displaying emotional responses or manipulating others’ perception. We’re going to keep that in mind for later. Put simply, an internet troll is someone who takes pleasure in being an asshole.
Tip #1:
DO NOT FEED THE TROLLS.
Bullies and trolls thrive on responses, especially emotional responses. They are poking and parading to see what comment is going to get you to lose your shit and let me tell ya, they get off on that. I know it can be so hard to not give a response or reaction because a lot of the time what they are saying is SO far off or literally just not true. You want to tell them where they are wrong or just to defend yourself but at the end of the day, I promise you it’s just not worth it. Going back to the definition of an internet troll, they WANT to provoke a response. So, you are just giving them exactly what they want when you poke back. Most of the time people that are trying to put you down are not open to seeing your point of side. They want to see you get mad or upset, they want you to say something out of anger so they can take that and hold it against you. I just refuse to do it. Some may say that I am being weak or not standing up for myself, but I choose to protect my peace more than trying to protect my name. I don’t think there is anyone else boring to troll than me because I truly am unbothered.
When you are confident in yourself, how you show up in life and know exactly what your purpose is, you are become so unbothered because you know what the haters are saying is just simply not true.
Tip #2:
Be in control of your platform or the people you are surrounding yourself WITH.
I look at my social media platforms like my home. If I would not allow someone to speak to me in a manner that I would let someone speak to me in my home, your comment is getting deleted. And if you come back to comment to tell me that you saw that I deleted your comment, your ass is getting blocked. Again, my time is precious, and I protect that shit. I do not have the time to listen to you explain to me how 2+2 is 5 or how the sky is pink.
Protect your space and your peace. If you come across a negative comment, just delete it and go about your day. Chances are if you respond, it will be a tennis match back and forth. Now you’ve lost energy and time and it’s most liekly going to ruin your day. NOT WORTH IT. Delete, block and move along. Don’t over complicate it.
“Unbothered, moisturized, in my lane, well-hydrated and flourishing”- Cardi B
Tip #3:
if you just CANNOT help yourself, reply with humor or kindness.
Trolls are looking for a negative response back so when you give them the opposite it almost takes them off guard. And, at the end of the day it doesn’t hurt to show kindness, you never know what someone is going through. As we say, hurt people hurt people.
If there is anything to take away from tip number 3 – do not respond right away! Take time to decompress and really think about what is being said. I guarantee you after a few hours or night's sleep, when it think about it again you’ll realize that it’s not even worth the response and in the end you end up stopping achieving the goal this little troll wanted. But it’s also worth remembering that if it’s a response online, that shit is out in there internet world forever. It’s not worth having responses out there that you might regret as you get older or it even impact you professionally. Our actions always have consequences.
Wrapping this conversation up, trolls are only as big as we make them. People who are trolling or just being an ass are so desperately trying to get a response from you. When you can step back and look at it, it’s not about being right or wrong. When you stop engaging with these people, you take the oxygen away from their fire and it’s no longer fun for them. Take the bridge and leave the trolls under them.
DO NOT FEED THE DAMN TROLLS.