Listen to the audio version of this post here.

Keeping cool with the comments.

The more outspoken we are, the more likely it is that somebody will feel the need to let us know how wrong we are, don’t you think?

Whether we’re speaking up about a troubling issue at work, being candid with a client, or sharing our opinion along with a picture on Instagram, we’ve opened the door for someone to weigh in with a different point of view.

Those exchanges can be perfectly pleasant, leading to a comfortable, straightforward exchange of ideas and resulting in a learning experience for everyone involved.

Or they can veer off in another direction. Which is especially likely on social networks where naysayers have some distance and maybe anonymity too.

That happens to me once in a while. A sharp reply to my post on LinkedIn or Facebook, a critical comment on my blog, or a snippy direct message. And I have to admit, it stings!

Taylor Swift has some advice for us.

Early in her career, the superstar was famously very active on social media. Back in the days of MySpace, she posted prolifically to promote her music and build her following.

She engaged deeply with fans on Tumblr. And she Tweeted now and again. Sometimes to defend herself from critics, professional and otherwise.

Not anymore.

You know Swift joined her famous football-playing sweetheart, Travis Kelce, for an episode of the podcast he co-hosts with his brother Jason. She told the New Heights audience that she’s mostly looking at social media in the rearview mirror these days.

Swift turned off comments on her Instagram posts years ago. Now, she says, she’s detached from the internet in a huge way. And she recommends it.

“Anything you feed your brain it will internalize,” the pop star shared. “Anything you feed the internet it will kill.”

Once in a while, even now, some comment does catch Swift’s attention. She says she tries to emulate Kelce’s approach to the whole thing. He just shrugs off the craziness that can come up on TikTok or wherever and laughs off a lot of it.

Wild speculation and negativity don’t even affect his day at all, Swift said. And that’s changing the way she metabolizes those things.

As for the rest of us, Swift advises that it’s a waste of time to get upset about online comments.

In fact, Swift says the trolls and naysayers don’t even deserve our attention. “You should think of your energy as if it’s expensive,” she said, “As if it’s a luxury item. Not everyone can afford it.”

So where does that leave us?

You don’t have to be an entertainer to be steeped in the advice that social networks can build your reputation and your business. I’ve been using LinkedIn that way for years. It’s a good bet you have too.

And the whole point of a social network is networking, right? I encourage people to engage with me and with each other, no matter what the platform. You know, you see me every week, in these messages to you, inviting your response on my blog.

The last thing I’d want to do is eliminate replies to whatever I have to say! I’m eager for the dialogue.

So, we ordinary businesspeople probably don’t want to follow Taylor Swift’s lead and shut it all down. We might go with Travis Kelce’s approach though.

According to his world-famous girlfriend, Kelce finds the back-and-forth “hilarious.”

That sounds good to me.

I’m going to take a step back when some random comment gets my goat and see if I can get to “hilarious.”  Ready to join me?