Alexandra Samuel

Because it's just so there's just so much garbage and so much fakeness and and who needs it?

A few different tactics.

The first thing to do is take yourself out of it, depersonalize it, and think –

If this were happening to a friend and just see like, okay, if it wasn't me who was being raked over the coals, what would I think here?

Would I think this is super unfair?

Would I think, God, that was a really insensitive thing this person said and they should probably admit it?

And really just try to be as kind to yourself as you would be if it was your best friend who was in this situation.

Like picture this happening to your best friend.

Don't hesitate to admit if you think you were wrong, but don't rush to respond either.

You really, really, really need to close the computer, put the phone down, walk away.

If you're like me, I'm not some Zen practitioner.

I can't just put things out of my head.

This is why television exists.

I go and watch some super engrossing TV show to make myself not think about it.

talk to somebody else, like somebody with good judgment, you know, somebody you respect, talk to one or two people and get them to look and say, what do you think?

Should I respond?

And then, you know, like, yeah, the internet moves quickly, but unless you are a celebrity and you're getting like 100,000 responses an hour, there's actually no reason that like the three crappy comments can't wait to be addressed the next day.

And then you absolutely can say you're wrong.

And I actually think one of the most powerful things that we can do as humans, as professionals, and as internet users is to show that you can be wrong, and you can even be wrong on the internet, and it doesn't kill you.

It doesn't destroy your value as a human.