This guest post is by Ryan Biddulph of Cashwithatrueconscience.com.
I know. You are beyond terrified to publish a guest post on an authority blog. It took me years to get the gumption to submit a post to problogger.net. Yep, it took me years. To even think about submitting a post. Then, after thinking about it, I finally decided to turn out the guest post and submit it. Success!
But it took a while because I was terrified to write a guest post for one specific reason.
I feared receiving hyper-critical comments from strangers. Really, I was terrified about seeing different opinions or snide comments, or having someone take apart my post like a roast chicken at a family dinner.
This fear was very real, so real in fact, that I refused to even think about submitting a guest post for many years. Of course this held my online businesses back big time, because hey, look at the size of the ProBlogger audience.
Fear is funny. You can either be held captive by fear, or you can use the fear for your benefit, by growing from it. It’s your choice. Every time.
Getting over the fear
Getting over the fear of criticism from the comments field is not easy. It is quite uncomfortable, really, but one thing you will learn quickly is this: if you want to grow you need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
If you want to submit the guest post, get it approved, attract more readers and make money with your blog, well, all of these benefits reside on the other side of your fears.
You must accept this idea to become successful.
Practical tip
Here is a neat little mantra which can help you get past the fear of criticism. Use it frequently.
“All about them, nothing to do with me.”
That is it. Repeat the mantra a few times. Embrace the idea that a commenter’s opinion is their viewpoint, which has to do entirely with them. Their viewpoint has nothing to do with you, because it is their viewpoint, not your viewpoint.
It can seem like a Herculean task, attempting to get past the fear of criticism. I know, you likely hate receiving negative comments. I do. But you need to move away from taking things personally if you plan to grow your blog readership at a quick clip.
The tendency to enter your cocoon
After reading a few negative comments from strangers who read your guest post, and disagree with it, you’ll want to run back to your lil’ comfy blog. You never want to deal with these rude, boorish commenters, who “know nothing about blogging”, so you stop submitting guest posts.
This is a mistake, entering your safety cocoon, your blog, because you will attract new readers, share your talents with the world and make money online by leveraging your presence.
Leveraging your presence means submitting guest posts to blogs with massive readerships. So, resist the urge to sprint to your comfort cocoon when you are angry at receiving criticism.
Where the big money is made
Is the criticism you receive in the comments field true? Is your ego blinding you? Are you simply angry at someone who makes a point which is true, which would put more readers in your RSS, and money in your pocket? You can dismiss people without tact but you can never dismiss the truth—at least, you can’t if you want to grow as a blogger.
The big blogging bucks are made if you can embrace all criticism, sift through the garbage, and take out the gold. Remember, a negative comment is a person’s opinion, a viewpoint. It is a suggestion. So, accept or reject the suggestion, and simply embrace the sting that might arise as you go through the sifting process.
Practice
Practice makes perfect in the fielding criticism department. Submit guest posts to authority blogs. Read the comments. Respond when you can but make sure to observe all manner of comments, and the responses or reactions which arise from within. Your blog’s RSS count will thank you for it.
Are you terrified to receive negative comments on your guest posts? Let’s talk about it in the coments.
Ryan Biddulph helps entrepreneurs create value and build connections to grow their home based opportunity. Please subscribe to his blog Click Here.
Ryan, You really spoke to me today. I loved the truth about – Becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable! So Awesome and well stated. I have had a friend of mine after me for months to post on his blog. I finally got the nerve to put my blog up today and believe what I have to say is relevant and important.
Thanks,
Matt Sullivan
I am soo afraid of guest post.Even when people approach me I feel self conscious like what I will write will tarnish their site forever and make it tumble.But I like how point out how its not personal
Ryan- this is a great article. I agree, it takes some gumption to write a guest blog post. I have been writing for my own blog and my companies blog recently, and it takes a lot of time and practice to write quality content. The SEO World is full of quality writers, and to stick out you need to be pretty clever and smart, technical and be actually funny. If it’s supposed to be funny, is it actually funny? Are you sure your friends and family aren’t just being nice?!
Though I am not afraid of guest post or comments but the topic gives really hard time to me… it takes long hours or days sometimes to think on ‘write on what…?’ once you decide the topic rest becomes easier
Great idea for a nice quick post! I think the biggest point to take away from this is not letting our ego get in the way. In the current climate of the blogosphere/social media world I think people get so tangled up in their fears of negative attention that they forget some of it may be deserved. Criticism is important for both personal and business growth. If you think you’r article isn’t good enough or that it will be received with overwhelming negative attention, write it better. There is always room for improvement and people know that, why not use this as a promotional and self-improvement strategy simultaneously!
Oh, yes. Negative comments terrify me in exceedigly high levels. I still need to learn how to respond to those properly, and this is where my wife (and my blogging partner comes in).
Since we both co-author articles, we have made an agreement we both accept the comment reply. This saves me from replying like: “No, you’re a morron” or similar. :)
This is what i actually needed Ryan. I am still afraid of Writing in Different Niche where i have to Place my Opinion. Just for the Critics i am not going out of Technology Niche. I want to Post Articles regarding SEO/Blogging but I am afraid of Critics. Your Mantra Helped a lot. if we don’t care what they think then we can concentrate better. Thanks
I am a brand new blogger (appx 2 weeks) and have started my blog via a Social Media class @ USF for my MBA. I have added Problogger to my blog; finding it to be a great learning tool; and loved this article. Thank you … giving me courage!
This quote says it all for me, “You must accept this idea to become successful.”
Now days you have to jump right at guest blogging, if you don’t it’s going to leave you behind in the dust real fast!
I am actually planning on trying to done a lot of guest blogging next month. If you know of anyone looking for some post could you please let me know.
Hi Ryan,
I like your mantra: “All about them, nothing to do with me.” that’s really helpful. I have one guest post under my belt, and finished drafting another post this week to submit. It is an intimidating thing at first, just a matter of getting used to it I suppose. Glad I read this today.
Guest posting is a good way to establish relationship other bloggers but it is also annoying.
Im curious why you think its annoying
Because it is time consuming and if I make a good post then why not I will publish it on my blog?
Wow…Today only I submitted Guest post on the blog and now I get more confident that it wil accept it!
Because I have followed nearly all the points! So, thanks for sharing this awesome post :)
Excellent post , Seriously it took you 1 year to do a guest post here ?
This is really a long time !
Well, If you keep fearing from Guest post then you could never make it. I think that if your content is good then every blogger will be ready to post your guest post. How ever you need to come up with some thing unique to do a guest post on problogger.net :)
Thank you
Writing quality posts, and build a good relationship with the blog owners. Good practice !
:)
I’m really not terrified at all. I’ve done several guest posts on medium-level blogs and they’ve all done well. I might be a tad nervous to guest post on a real big blog like Chris Brogan, Michael Hyatt, or Donald Miller, but not terrified. Perhaps, with the exception of Brogan, I think I could nail a post for these guys. Writing is what I do. The problem is, if I spend too much time guest posting, I don’t get my books completed as quickly. I would be more interested in how to get quality writers to guest post for me.
Glad you got over it. I found this post interesting, because for me, it’s public speaking. I just have a hard time standing in front of an audience and saying what I have to say. I can see where someone would have that fear in writing as well. You just have to conquer that fear to become better at growing your business! Good post.
Your post finally gave me the courage to see about guest posting on bigger blogs like problogger and then come to find out that as of 2013 problogger is no longer accepting unsolicited guest posts. LOL.. the story of my life.
:)
Thanks, this is really a lot of help. I have recently been invited to guest post at a couple key blogs, I am nervous as all get out, but this has helped a bit. I am still nervous even though I blog all the time, but I guess I will just have to jump in a do it….Thanks.
I have never done any guest posting before, I guess I am too busy posting on my own blog. I would think it’s as simple as writing a few meaningful comments and much easier then doing guest speaking.
Very innovative! We are always afraid of rejection whether it is online or offline. But we must understand that criticism simply means that others have started noticing us, and it is a good start. Besides that if we know our strengths and weaknesses, false criticism will only enhance our confidence level. Because that critisism will only be a masked compliment. Congratulation to the author for writing on such an innovative topic.
Practical tips to get going. It took me a whole year before submitting my first guest blog post.
Was I afraid to get negative comments: Maybe, I don’t know. Instead I focus on keeping up the momentum. As mentioned: My blog’s RSS count grows along with the number of guest blog posts.
Funny thing- I am scared of posting even on my own blog. Not necessarily for the fear of comments but the fear of Reputation. It scares sh*t out of me! Hell ya- I either make such reputation as some bad big boys like Dotcom or sit down here in the pit. I guess I’ll shoot the Reputation thing now. I really mean now.
I loved this line from the blog “The big blogging bucks are made if you can embrace all criticism, sift through the garbage, and take out the gold. ”
I have received quite a lot of criticism but now I am growing day by day!
That’s my problem Ryan, I’ve been trying to guest post on authority blogs from long time, but I think I missed the chance because Problogger stopped guest post submissions.
I’m glad to submit one on DailyblogTips.
Thank you for such a nice post… Or I should thank you for throwing guest blogging fear out. The tips you have mentioned here are really innovative and encouraging for new bloggers who are seeking to get opportunity for guest blogging or has already got the one but are afraid to grab it. These tips will help me, thank you again for sharing.