Having hates is an inevitable part of any bold journey – everyone who has made a difference in the world has had doubters and critics. As natural as haters might be, in the age of social media it’s become harder and hard to ignore them – and so we asked some brilliant creatives and entrepreneurs to tell us how they deal with haters.

Tiffany Toney

I was raised by two parents and an amazing family who encouraged me to always believe in myself. If there was ever something I wanted to do, they found a way to support me…I remember my Dad working multiple jobs to make sure I never knew how hard things really were for him and my mom. I think that women, especially women of color have been up against some pretty detrimental stereo-types and that has been my most difficult barrier along my journey. Because I am multi-racial, people often pushed me in and out of “Boxes” for their own digestion, and none of those boxes ever resonated with the core of who I am as a human being with deep empathy. I love hard, I fight hard, I create hard…..everything I do, I go all in. I thought this would be considered an asset in Hollywood, but sometimes people feel threatened by it (as if I want what they have or want to be them) I don’t. I just want to be the best version of myself and work with a team of people who appreciate what I bring, so that we can build an ecosystem that allows us all to win (over and over again). I think the hate comes in, when people feel the need to compare journeys. I’ve been hated on by people who have much more money and success than me….and honestly some of those people were individuals I looked up to…..they were my heroes, so that was actually really heartbreaking. I think the ego is a really dangerous thing…..if we can all find the balance between being confident and practicing humility, I think we would all be better off. The ego causes people to compete with others who aren’t even in their lane. I never wanted to produce or direct, I wanted to be an actress, but when I kept being told I wasn’t “black enough” for this or “indigenous enough” for that….I realized I would have to learn to write, produce, and direct my own film, just so that I could showcase my acting skills. Nobody would give me a chance because they were pissed that I didn’t fit into their little boxes. I never set out to be the best “black or brown” actress….I set out to connect with humans, artists, lovers, dreamers, women, men, children, and people in general despite their race, religion, or socio-economic status. My dream was always to connect with people so deeply through my work, that peop[e forget about all of those things, and just “feel” something. I have been judged, stereo-typed, criticized for not helping certain people….for helping too many people….blackballed for not sleeping with certain people, and criticized even more if I do decide I like someone…. for a woman like me, It’s damned if you do, damned if you don’t. So I decided that the only way to deal with hate and negativity, is to live as authentically and unapologetically as possible. At least that way, I know it was always “me”….my choice, not anyone else’s. And as long as I know that it was “me” who decided to take that role, do that stunt job, kiss that man, take that trip, as long as I know that my heart and intentions were authentic in my personal and creative choices….then I can live with that. As many mistakes as I’ve made, from quitting a job too soon, to falling for the wrong guy….I have no regrets. My grandmother is almost 80 years old and she has never let her age or her ethnicity stop her from dancing, drinking the best wine, kissing boys, and falling in love over and over again under the full moon as she dips her toes into oceans all over the world. She stopped counting the years after 25 and I think her soul stopped aging the moment she made that choice. So as her grand daughter, it’s only right that I keep the tradition. What we give energy to grows, and I chose to nurture my inner child and stay creative and free…so that leaves no time to give the “hate” any of my attention. Read more>>

Brandy Miller

I fulfill a variety of roles for our three brands – Path To Publishing, PTP Press, and Path To Connections. The most exciting thing about the work I do is building the strategies that allow us to gain traction in the industry so we can increase our visibility and our impact. There’s a lot of hard work involved behind the scenes because we’re striving to break new ground but we remain committed to it because we know that the programs and the offers we’ve created can make a life-saving, history-shaping, world changing difference. Read more>>

Mike & Max Glasspress

Despite being an experimental, avant-garde grindcore band, we are unaware of any haters. Read more>>

Zimuzo Okala

I have to admit it can be difficult at times but when I do the math I find that in order for them to have something to comment on I found enough joy and motivation to put it out and all they did with their time was be negative and that’s easy. “Anybody could do that” ok but you didn’t! “You have so much time on your hands” maybe? But isn’t that a blessing? “I have a real job” and it sounds like you hate it maybe you should try something you like as much as I like my job! Lol I know there’s a personal fulfillment in what I did that nobody can take from me. And for every one negative person there’s droves of people that got something positive from my work but ultimately as long as one of those people is me, I’m good! Plus feedback positive or negative can always be used as inspiration! Read more>>

Vanessa Buschek

I always say that “if you don’t have haters, you’re doing something wrong”. Living by this is what helps me persist and remain hopeful towards the growth of my business. So many people I encounter don’t take Fur Pals seriously; they often mock me when I mention that I’m building a pet care business. That’s how I know I need to keep going. They make it seem as though I can’t go anywhere with a business that’s being started from the ground up that involves “playing with pets all day”. When you find something you love to do, though, you can absolutely take it into any direction you want to go. So I don’t let the haters stop me, if anything they’re my motivation. Read more>>

Elley Ringo

I’ve actually gained my confidence through failure and through being bullied and put down. Without failure there is no growth. When we fail, if we’re smart we will keep track of the failure and learn the ins and outs of why we didn’t succeed using that method. You make small tweaks until you get it right. We have to learn to rely on ourselves in the toughest times to pull ourselves up. When I was a teen and young adult I was told that I wasn’t good enough, I was told I wasn’t pretty enough, and I was told that it wasn’t my time, that I should find something different to love. I chose not to believe them. Even though their words hurt and it felt like daggers, and to be honest it definitely left scars. But I always told myself I could. I knew that if so many people have braved so many drastic things throughout their lives, then I could do the same. Being in this industry comes with a lot of pushback a lot of NOs with very little feedback. You have to believe in yourself to keep going and I’ve built my confidence through my belief in myself. Through overcoming people that have told me no, through people that told me that I wouldn’t be good enough. I guess I was determined to prove them wrong and in doing so I found courage, self-esteem and my value. My goal is to keep failing up. Read more>>