How to Let Negative Comments Roll Off Your Back

No one likes dealing with the ugly side of putting yourself out there publicly. 

You could put out a pic of the ocean and caption it “look at how blue it is!” and someone will argue back that you’re wrong and it’s actually green.

No matter what you do, how much you try to filter, you will never truly make everyone happy. What you can do, though, is make yourself happy and seek out others who enjoy your content as well to start building relationships with them.

The memes I post sometimes have a (tasteful, I would say) shock value to them, which isn’t always appreciated by the masses. That isn’t isolated to just humorous posts, though. Anything that can induce emotion within someone else creates the possibility of them reacting negatively. Even something like an AI-generated post on positivity could be struck down by creatives that were recently impacted by layoff. 

That’s the game when you are posting, and in doing so, you need to understand that every individual that comes across it will have their own interpretation, experiences, and context behind it. You have no way of knowing what every single person seeing your content is going through, nor should you be accommodating your content around a single audience member. It’s YOUR page and YOUR content, after all.

So when people leave unsavory comments, what are you to do? How do you react? 

More importantly, how do you allow yourself to move forward and not hold onto it?

1. Sometimes there’s a grain of truth (and sometimes it’s just misplaced)
   It’s always important to be self-critical and check for any validity in what’s being said. But that requires taking an objective look at the situation: is there actually merit to their point, or are they just looking to cause harm? Learn to spot the difference so you know when to reflect and when to move on
   
   
2. The block button is your BFF.
   No one deserves access to you or your community that isn’t there for positive and genuine reasons. Some people will follow for the sole purpose of leaving mean and hateful comments… don’t let them. Treat it like your home; if someone is being rude and nasty, it’s time to kick them out and not invite them back.
   
   
3. It’s rarely ever personal
   The people that tend to leave the most hateful things are the ones insecure in themselves and their inability to put themselves out there the way you are. It sounds snooty to say, but that’s the reality of it. It’s easy to judge someone for something you’re too scared to do yourself.
   
   
   

   

   
   
   
4. They’re usually missing critical context
   Not everything you post will be targeted for the masses, but when its seen by people outside of your typical audience, it is more likely to be perceived in a different light. They don’t see your typical posting style, and its easier to take things out of context. You might have real-life experience which speaks to why you posted what you did, but you don’t owe it to ANYONE to explain yourself. Especially when their intention in the first place was to “catch you” in saying something wrong.
   
   
5. They will forget about you by the time they go to bed.
   Why give them the power over you to control your emotions? People like that leave negative comments all the time, and you are one in a dozen to them. They don’t even think about the poster when leaving them. Give them the same amount of respect and don’t let them take up precious real estate in your mind.
   
   
6. Some people just want the attention for real.
   They aren’t even actually mad about it, just see an opportunity to possibly “own” (do we still say that in 2026?) someone on their own post. People love feeling intelligent and superior and some people need it so badly they will put down others in the process. Notifications and being noticed feels nice. If they are getting that from putting down others, it doesn’t matter who it is.
   
   
7. They’re not your people
   You post to find your people. Whether it’s to inform, educate, entertain, or otherwise, you post in hopes of finding others who can relate to that. When someone leaves a negative comment, they’re not it. They are not commenting with the same intention, and are trying to shift focus to a different topic. You need to worry about the people who are supporting you; take the energy you would use replying to a hate comment to respond to someone who left a positive one.

It’s not always easy, but it’s always doable. The internet can be a brutal place at times, and these few reminders will hopefully help you process and move past them without a second thought.