How To Treat WA As You Would Any Brick & Mortar Business (With Respect)
There are many WA members who have been "accused" (for want of another word) of being WA zealots. Such avid supporters of this community that they are blind to the so-called faults and failings of this platform. Perhaps I have become one of them over the years. Perhaps not. If I have, please do not expect me to be apologetic about it, see, WA has become a very special place for me. A place where I have built amazing friendships and interacted with successful entrepreneurs from all walks of life; a place where I have learned more than I ever have in one place before; a place where I am being taught how to build my own successful online business (es). That may be what brings me to this zealous blog - how to treat WA as you would any brick & mortar business (with respect).
It also may not be.
It could be a case of common courtesy and respect - Kindergarten Rules even. Allow me to explain ...
Kindergarten Rules
Here are some "rules" written in a beautiful book called All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, the author's name: Robert Fulghum
“These are the things I learned (in Kindergarten):
1. Share everything.
2. Play fair.
3. Don't hit people.
4. Put things back where you found them.
5. CLEAN UP YOUR OWN MESS.
6. Don't take things that aren't yours.
7. Say you're SORRY when you HURT somebody.
8. Wash your hands before you eat.
9. Flush.
10. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
11. Live a balanced life - learn some and drink some and draw some and paint some and sing and dance and play and work everyday some.
12. Take a nap every afternoon.
13. When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
14. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
15. Goldfish and hamster and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
16. And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK.”
? Robert Fulghum, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten
The above "rules" are, I am sure, familiar to every one of us in the community, right? They help us in life and many of them are no brainers ... why? ... Simply because we know how it would feel to be on the receiving end of someone who doesn't do these basics, and it does not feel good.
Enter Wealthy Affiliate ... How To Treat WA As You Would Any Brick & Mortar Business (With Respect)
Let's apply some common sense rules to how the majority of us behave when we enter a brick and mortar building. Starting with what WE WOULD NOT do:
- We would not enter a business and start interviewing the customers in that business (certainly not without permission of the business owner)
- We would not conduct research amongst the staff and members of that business without first approaching the business owners.
- We would not grab the microphone at a meeting where all staff, members, and customers are in attendance and announce our opinions without the consent of the business owners.
What WOULD OR SHOULD WE do?
In every instance, we would privately approach the owners, or management of the business (at the very least) and have a discussion about our thoughts, opinions, and ideas - right?
Can you imagine someone walking into a Walmart store, or a Bank, or an Advertising Agency, or any established concern and doing the following:
- Interact with the customers within the store/business and hand them an iPad which is linked to an online survey where they can express their opinions about the business - without the consent or knowledge of the business owner?
- Or redirect the customers elsewhere - to another retail store, bank, corporate business?
- Grab the mic at a meeting where all stakeholders are in attendance and make announcements about what could and should be improved within that business?
Sounds Absurd, Right?
So, Why Then Do We See These Things Happening Within WA?
Yes, Louise is having a rant. Something I have an aversion to, to be quite frank. So I will apologize here, halfway through.
What Are My Expectations?
My expectations are that we all, every single member of Wealthy Affiliate, conduct ourselves with the following:
- Respect for the fact that this is a business - not our own business, but one built through a lot of blood, sweat, and tears by the owners of the business - Kyle and Carson
- Respect for the owners of this business - yes, Kyle and Carson once again. They have built this amazing platform from the ground up over the last 15 years. They deserve our respect. Yes, we are their paying customers, but we can also show them respect and appreciation for everything they provide for us.
- Respect for the fact that WA is THEIR business and, should we have any ideas to improve the platform, or grievances about adverse experiences we have within WA - we should approach them first. And not grab the mic and make announcements to every stakeholder in the business!
Kyle & Carson Have Earned Our Respect & Appreciation
The founders of Wealthy Affiliate have earned our respect through all the work they have put into this business over the last 15 years.
Not only that, these two fearless leaders can truly be called fearless because they afford us the freedom to write blogs within WA which become part of the public domain.
The freedom we should appreciate and not abuse.
If they were not legitimate businessmen who take pride in everything they do, I am pretty certain that neither Kyle nor Carson would be careless enough to give us a platform to do damage to their business.
We can trust Kyle and Carson - now, let's behave in ways that are trustworthy too.
One Last Thing ...
If you do have ideas or criticisms to make about WA, go ahead and message Carson and Kyle ... they are interested in what you have to say. They are not dictators, they are amazing guys who listen to what we have to say and work on ideas they see the value in.
You can reach Kyle and Carson as follows:
Private Message or leave a message on their profiles:
Email
TIP: Allow them time to respond, they may not be in the same time zone as you AND they have an exceptionally large platform and community to attend to.
The End
Okay, so that is my rant over. I honestly believe these things needed to be said ... sad but true.
I welcome your comment on this rant of mine. And ... if the shoe fits and this blog riles you ... I make no apology at all #sorrynotsorry.
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog/rant about how to treat WA as you would any brick & mortar business (with respect).
Please feel free to participate in the comments below.
Blessings as always
Recent Comments
64
Hi Louise, Some very good points in your post, ones we should all take on board. No business is perfect and no person is perfect. We have to deal with any problems fairly and honestly I think. WA is the same as any other business both for its customers and the owners.
I like the kindergarten rules..they should be adhered to in adult life too, especially the cookies and milk! :-))
Take care, I hope all is well with you.
Louise
Hi Louise
Great to see your happy face again :-)
I agree, all businesses will face challenges, that is the nature of the world we live in. I've never seen you show the kind of disrespect mentioned in this blog - my gut tells me that would be as unthinkable for you and it is for me.
Glad you enjoyed the cookies and milk - as a little girl I was given warm milk and mashed banana's, there must be a secret hidden in that combination, it got me back to sleep, lol!
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your input, I really appreciate it.
All is well my side, thank you. Yours too I trust?
Blessings
Louise
Hi, All good with me thank you. I have learnt over many years not to make judgement without knowing all the facts, disrespecting folk comes into the category of not knowing facts and even worse it means that some folk only like to hear their own voice and opinion. The ones who don't have a valid argument that they can discuss/debate in a polite manner are the ones that become verbally abusive. At which point I tend to call them out on it then walk away.
Have a great weekend.
Great Post. As entrepreneurs we are naturally driven but sometimes that can make us selfish! It shouldn't!
Within WA we must remember that the community is built upon the pay it forward philosophy and therefore not expect or demand answers / comments etc. Everyone is here for themselves but that does not mean we can be arrogant or ignorant! We should respect each other.
And we should respect our initial mentors. Kyle and Carson have built something special here! Long may it continue!
Hi Lawrence
True words - thank you for reminding us.
The pay it forward culture is what makes WA tick - we are so fortunate to be a part of it.
Agreed. Respect for Kyle and Carson and long may it continue!
Thank you for participating and sharing your views.
Blessings
Louise
I do agree with you. I found this platform to be a welcome surprise in a swamp of internet offerings.
There is integrity inside WA that starts from the top down and is evident at every level of the platform.
Kyle and Carson have set up something that is good and helpful for members of every skill level.
That is what makes this place so special, it is safe for newbies to take their first steps and then grow without fear of being taken advantage of.
If they choose to not put in any effort then - yes they will not progress, but even a little effort will pay off here in WA and that is because the founders wanted it that way.
I love it here.
Alex
Hi Alex
That's the word I missed in the blog - integrity! You are quite right, it starts from the top-down, and the way Kyle & Carson conduct themself oozes integrity.
Your comment is a very special one too - may I take a screenshot and use it in my promotions of WA, please? You have described WA perfectly.
Thank you for taking the time to read this blog/rant and for leaving your contribution too.
Blessings always
Louise
Of course, you can use it if you want to, that is what WA is all about, sharing as needed.... - thank you for thinking it is ok.
Alex
Hi Alex
Your comment is better than okay, you must be the master of understatement :-)
Thank you so very much for agreeing to me sharing it on my site.
Blessings
Louise
Hi Louise,
In no way do I consider this a rant. I do believe it is very timely as there have been certain situations where my posts here have been questioned.
I have wondered if my posts are appropriate here as they have to do with health tips for our WA family, and the dangers of certain products.
I do not know if I will be posting such articles here anymore. I just thought they would be helpful.
Respectfully,
Michael
Hi Michael
Thank you so much.
I am sorry to read that you are questioning if your posts are appropriate here. My understanding is that the WA platform provides us with a training space ... writing blogs within the community is great for exercising our writing muscles; it also provides us with a "social media like" environment where we can share our experiences, what is on our mind, articles of interest etc and build relationships with one another (just as we would in Fb, Insta or the likes); and three, ALL our experiences in our lives contribute to our growth, why would we not share them here? So long as our blogs do not infringe on the WA rules (you know the spam is a no no list) we can write what we want within the community. Cassie of Troy also wrote about how our WA blogs contribute to our online presence, not to mention that they also add value to WA and Google's relationship from what I understand.
From what I have seen, you've been a valued and appreciated member within WA and I encourage you to keep writing and posting.
Blessings
Louise
See more comments
*** Beautifully said, Louise!
Super reminder that we are all 'guests' here on this Awesome platform! ...
keep well & thanks kindly for posting ... all the best,
cheerio ... :) ***
Hi Keisha
Great to see you.
Thank you so much - I like that "guests" piece, we may be paying guest but we are still guests. Right of Admission Reserved should be posted all over, lol!
Blessings
Louise x