I’ve been preaching the power of live video for a while now. In fact, I just launched my Live Video Academy because I truly believe live video is the most effective tool female entrepreneurs have to connect with the right people and turn those people into paying clients.
With all that said, even I can let things hold me back from going live. I still get nervous, just like many of you. Here’s why...
What holds us back from going live with confidence?
Fear of criticism
One of the reasons I’m sometimes hesitant to go live is that I don’t want people to criticize me and the things I’m sharing. The truth is, the more success we have, the more open we become to the criticism of others. The internet gives us all a platform. Some of us use it to build, create and encourage. Others use it to criticize and spread negativity. The more followers you have, the more likely you are to interact with the latter group on some level. There is no shortage of criticism online and the fear of it can hold many of us back.
Fear of looking dumb
If I am being completely honest, I don’t want to go live because I don’t want to look dumb. I don’t want to get on there and stumble over my words, or ramble. I don’t want to get on there when my hair isn’t on point or when I’ve just thrown on my workout clothes. Looking dumb is a huge fear that can creep in just before I hit the go live button.
I am not sure what to say
While I’m sure you think I am never at a loss for words, I often feel like I don’t have much to share. I think that no one really wants to hear what I have to say, or that what I would say is not all that valuable. This will often hold me back from going live, as I don’t believe there is really any reason for me to add to the noise online.
My epic fails...that’s right, there’s more than one!
A few months ago, I did a live video with the intention of giving women the freedom to step away from network marketing partnerships that were not profitable. I had seen so many women depleted and feeling like a failure because they couldn’t make their network marketing partnership work. I wanted to address the issue and let women know they did not need to be all things at all times. If they were not destined to be a business owner then that was truly okay.
However, during the video, I went off script and mentioned a specific demographic of people that I believed should not be business owners. I quickly began to receive comments, and realized that I actually have several friends who fit this demographic and are successful business owners. Lost in my passion were my good intentions, and I ended up sending several apology emails and text messages that week. I was so thankful to receive so much grace, and felt horrible. It felt a bit like a face plant in front of thousands of people. Thankfully, I was able to recover and make things right.
Then, just a little while ago, I did a follow up video on a related topic. I saw that it was getting some great traction and that it had been shared by several people. I hopped on to see who was sharing, assuming it was because they liked the message. Boy was I wrong. Three different people had shared the video solely to criticize me for using my hands too much. People were then commenting on how much I moved not only my hands, but my head. Basically all of these people were making fun of the way I speak, paying no attention at all to what I was actually saying. To say that this hurt would be an understatement. Talking with my hands is just a thing I do when I am passionate. It is very much who I am, and something I’ve worked on in the past. Live video seems to highlight this, and several people had lots of thoughts on that. For a minute, I wanted to call it a day and stop going live. But I didn’t.
I pushed past all of these things because...
It is truly my mission to help female entrepreneurs earn a significant income so they can recirculate that money back into family, church and community. I believe that is the most effective way to bring about change in the world. So, I have to move past my own fears and provide value for my clients and followers.
At the end of the day, I know I can truly help people grow their business and change the world as a result. It really isn’t about me, it’s about my clients.
If I am able to truly help the women I am called to help, then I can deal with people making fun of my hand motions, or going live with a terrible haircut. Sometimes I have to just get over myself and move forward, knowing I have been called to do certain things, and need to be faithful to do those things, despite my fears.
If you’ve been called to build a business, and online marketing will help you do that, then you need to look at what’s holding you back and hold it up against that calling.
Yes, fear is real. People may criticize you. They may make fun of you. You may say the wrong thing and have to send out apology emails, or take down a video. But, if you can truly help people, then do it anyway.
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