This article was originally posted on February 3rd, 2015, but it mysteriously vanished, most likely sacrificed during one of our many hosting migrations. It was Reposted from an article (see footnote for link) I wrote on reddit.com in 2014.
Don’t Tell Anyone
Seriously… don’t.
When I first started Dallas Maids, I didn’t tell anyone what I was doing. Not friends. Not family. No one. Oh, there were rumors, of course. When people don’t have information, they create their own. One friend even joked, “What are you building, some kind of naughty site?”
And frankly… that right there is exactly why I kept it quiet. Not because I had anything to hide—but because I wanted to avoid negativity.
Why Silence Works
People are incredibly susceptible to suggestion. Now, you might think you’re strong-headed (and maybe you are), but what others say still seeps in. Quietly. Subconsciously. And over time, it shapes your decisions more than you realize.
Negative input is especially powerful. It doesn’t just bounce off, it lingers, drives deep into your subconcious mind, it compounds, and it starts influencing your actions. So I made a decision early on:
No outside opinions until I had something real.
No one telling me to get a “real job.”
No one questioning why I left a promising tech career… to clean houses.
And I’m incredibly glad I did, because starting Dallas Maids (and my other businesses) turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Avoid Negative People
…like the plague.
Along the way, I’ve had to defriend a few people in real life. Not dramatically; just quietly.
Negativity is contagious.
And here’s the uncomfortable truth: Some people, without being concious of it, don’t want you to succeed more than they have. It’s not usually intentional. It’s not malicious in a conscious way. It’s just… human nature mixed with environment, conditioning, and a bit of ego (psychologically speaking).
They’ll question you. Doubt you. “Just be realistic.” And if you’re not careful, that voice becomes your voice.
Negative People Are Everywhere (Yes, Even Reddit)
You’ve seen it. Post something online and out comes the random negativity. Completely unwarranted, sometimes almost impressive in how unnecessary it is.
Quick experiment: Click their profile.
You’ll usually find a pattern. Some people are just… committed to being negative. It’s basically a hobby. So, don’t take it personally.
- It’s them, not you.
- Be grateful they’re not in your day-to-day life.
You could avoid places like Reddit entirely… but there’s value here too. That’s why I’m here: I’ve been fortunate to know the freedom of having your own business and want to share my experience with you because you deserve to have this, too. We are lucky to experience this sliver of time between two great eternities, so make the most of it! Experience and do good.
Ending tangent. Let me get back on track…
Back on Track…
So don’t tell anyone when starting a business, continue de-friending negative people and befriending positive people, and learn a little about psychology. Lee Iacocca attributed his success to his psychology degree. Understanding people and motivating them are key. I’d recommend his autobiography, too, good book.
This advice is my own derived from what I had known of psychology. It is one of my secrets on how I started my first business and having it wildly successful. Strangely, it’s advice absent from any business related book I’ve read at the time, though in the May, 2009 issue of Psychological Science is an article confirming my “don’t tell anyone” strategy I used in 2004: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/ulterior-motives/200905/if-you-want-succeed-don-t-tell-anyone.
I hope this helps you, especially if you are just starting out. Know that you already have everything within you to do this. And each day you are becoming better and better.
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