Table of Contents
ONCE MY OPINION OF SOCIAL MEDIA CHANGED, I STARTED GAINING FOLLOWERS
I spent 2 years losing on social media, until I started posting things that made me slightly uncomfortable.
this is my claim: it’s impossible to regret posting your slightly embarrassing ideas when they start making you money & scaling your impact.
Yes, I know what you are thinking…
”I could tarnish my brand”
“I believe there is a “too personal” for online & social media”
“But I’m fed up with opinions on social media and don;t want to contribute to the noise”
“What if this makes me look less credible?”
“What if the people I respect see this?”
“People are going to think this is cringe”
Well, good news I offer you a rebuttal throughout this memo, for every single one of these doubts lingering around, because I have overcome every single one of these my. very. self!
I was suck in my own head, and ultimately building a brick wall in front of my face without realized every day, I was the one creating obstruction.
No one else.
-It was not society who told me it would be embarrassing,
-it wasn't my mom,
-it wasn’t my long-lost-friend from high school that was laying the bricks.
I presented all the reasons why it wouldn't work for myself, instead of all the reasons why it could work.
We all pretty much know for certain that a good personal brand and following online will bring us closer to our goals…
But until you make the simple decision,
“I believe this will work eventually, and I will do whatever it takes to make it work.”
After I made that decision, I could name 5 stages of the transformation that built me an online presence that brings
-followers
-brand deals
-podcast invites
-collaboration requests
-peers, clients, and mentors that truly push me forward.
and finally, an engaged network that is truly aligned with who I am at my core.
No need to feel so filtered all the time
No need to do all this pretending, and questioning if i should post it or not
3.9 million views in the past 30 days on Instagram
STAGE 1 - FRICTION
I was stuck in my own head.
Overthinking everything.
Filtering everything.
Trying to sound right instead of being real.
And nothing landed.
If all I wanted to do is make more cash.
All I wanted to do is convert.
All I wanted to do is scale my impact.
Then I realized I needed to detach my emotions
-fear
-embarrassment
-etc
And publish the thoughts and content before I could convince myself it was a stupid idea again.
I was FED UP, because I realized I was the one getting in my own way the entire time.
I just needed more DATA to learn from, and I was stopping the most PERSONAL and HUMAN content before anyone could tell me they related to it or not.
“What if I’m not as smart as I think I am?”...
HOLD ON. Hold on.
You’re telling me you’re part of one of the most complex, intelligent species we know… and you’ve decided you’re not smart enough?
It’s not about being smart. You already are. You’re human.
Treat it like clarity instead
If you can clearly communicate a thought or an opinion that relates to someone, that’s enough.
We all are unique in out thoughts.
Your perspective on a situation is one of the most valuable things you can give.
STAGE 2 - DETACHMENT
I stopped treating my content like a reflection of me.
And started treating it like data.
Just reps. Just output.
Just experiments.
(Yes… some of it made me a little embarrassed for a couple hours.)
“What if this makes me look less credible?”
OHH STOP IT, it’s really not the point anymore.
Your credibility in content means a small percentage compared to what it's like to be a truthful voice.
Real raw, authentic and HUMAN.
People connect with that. The struggle, the mistakes, the REAL moments. Not your 100th polished case study.
You’re not a robot.
So stop flattening yourself and actually separate yourself.
That’s how I knew I was finally exploring.
How else are we supposed to grow, unless we get uncomfortable first?
“I believe there is a “too personal” for online & ”I could tarnish my brand”
social media”
Yeah, there is a line.
I think about it the same way you would in real life.
Like your best friend’s secret? Not content.
Your kid’s exam results? Probably not content either.
You just have to develop a feel for what actually matters to your audience and what doesn’t belong online.
And let’s be real.
As long as you don’t claim you robbed a bank or you were part of high-level ring of criminals…
You can survive a few bumps in the road.
The internet moves fast. Attention spans even faster.
So be an honest, good, ethical, and humble human being
and you really can’t mess this up!!
STAGE 3 - SCIENTIST IN A LAB
There's a few metrics that REALLY shout, DO THIS AGAIN,
And it is important you become ruthless with the data.
Whatever has a higher percentage of
-shares
-saves
-comments
-or messages referring to it
THAT'S WHAT YOU repeat
And the good news is that, all that time you spent trying something, was time spent figuring out what DOESN'T work,
Time to delete it.
“But I’m fed up with opinions on social media and don’t want to contribute to the noise”
I know… some comment sections are exhausting.
And you don’t need that kind of noise in your life.
But here’s the part people miss.
You actually have more control than you think.
The way people respond is shaped by what you put out.
If you post rage bait, you get chaos back.
If you post surface-level takes, you get surface-level replies.
But if you share real ideas, and back them with your own experiences,
you set a different tone.
You attract people who want to think.
Who want to add to the conversation.
Who show up like adults.
And that’s when it gets interesting.
You can feel the people pushing each other to level up.
STAGE 4 - REFINEMENT
Kill what doesn’t move anything.
Run it like this:
80% what’s working
20% new experiments
Now I wasn’t guessing anymore. I was building.
STAGE 5 - ALIGNMENT
The best part about this whole thing. I didn’t feel filtered anymore.
No pretending.
No second-guessing.
Just compounded practice expressing who I am until I dialed in the clarity so that the right people are FINALLY finding me.
“People are going to think this is cringe”
I’m sorry, but a little cringe is kind of the payoff.
There’s no avoiding it. Everyone goes through it if you’re actually putting yourself out there.
It’s the entry fee to a great online presence. (seriously. ask anyone who’s built something real)
“What if the people I respect see this?”
And if the people you respect see you post something that’s fully you… and they judge you for it,
is it really worth respecting them anymore?
Like actually think about that.
Take a look at the people whose opinions carry that much weight in your head.
Are they the ones who are going to lead you into a life where you’re surrounded by real opportunity, real alignment, and people you can actually be yourself around?
Or are they the reason you keep holding back?
Because the kind of network I want…
is one where I can be fully myself, no filter, no second guessing, and no fear of judgment.
But it was the only thing that got you here.
You were building a concrete wall right in front of your face.
Now you’ve created a door.
And allowed yourself to be set free.
From there, your audience grows.
Conversions grow.
And you’re finally winning.
You actually don’t regret anything you tried.
Because it’s the only thing that got you here.
It was the one thing that was getting in your way.
You were building a concrete wall right in front of your face—every single day—without stepping back to see the damage you were doing.
Now you’ve created a door.
And you finally let yourself out.
No regrets.
— Syd
Founder of SSS Lighthouse Creative
STEAL THESE 12 HIGH-PERFORMING HOOKS
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