MBA2429 Q&A Wednesday: How do I deal with haters that say we need more diversity?

0:09Heyo! Welcome to the$100 MBA show because the more you know the more you grow in your business. That's why we deliver practical business lessons. I'm your host, your coach, your teacher, Omar Zinhome. And today's episode is Q &A Wednesday. On Q &A Wednesdays, we answer a question from one of you, one of our listeners. If you've got a question you want to ask, go ahead and email me over at omar at 100mba.net. Today's question is from James, and James asks, Hey Omar, I run an annual event that brings professionals from around the country to my conference. We have speakers on stage, and every year when we announce the speakers, we get a lot of hate from the people on social media.

0:49People saying we're not showing enough diversity with our speakers. Trust me, we try, but sometimes there's just not enough diversity in our market. How do we deal with the haters that complain about our diversity? I find this to be a very interesting question because I actually had a similar conversation at a dinner just a few weeks ago. I have a lot to say on this topic because a lot of people don't understand the value of diversity. They don't really understand that it's actually going to help your business in more ways than you probably imagine. And it's more than just ticking a box or being PC or, you know, quieting the haters.

1:24But I'll also answer the question how to deal with people's feedback. How do you deal with when people say something about your business in public? How do you respond not only to them on social, but how do you respond in your business? Let's get into it. Let's get down to business. I'm sure you heard the saying, the truth hurts. The way I interpret that saying is that when you hear something from somebody and it stings a little, there's probably some truth in there. But even if there isn't any truth and no sting at all, your response to any kind of feedback from your audience is important. First of all, if somebody is giving you any kind of feedback, even if they're not giving it to you in the best way, the rude or obnoxious, it's still feedback and you should listen to it because there could be something that you can learn and improve in your business.

2:13Your worst enemies can be your best friend in this regard. So just because they're saying something that maybe is unpleasant, it doesn't make them a hater. This is why it's so important to listen in business. You don't have to follow what they say. You don't have to do exactly what they say, but listening informs your decisions. It allows you to make better decisions. It allows you to, you know, really think about what people say, have an open mind, step away from it. Don't be so attached to it. Pretend they're talking about another business and see if you can kind of see it from an objective angle or an objective way.

2:47And of course, there's going to be people out there that are just spewing hate and are trying to stir up stuff, but that's okay. That means you're not being ignored. That means you're doing something worth commenting about. Now, let's talk about this idea of having diversity, whether it's in your company itself with your team members, whether it's an event like James where they have a panel of speakers or maybe a mastermind you're running, or maybe when you're hiring a freelancer or whatever it might be. Why does this matter? Why do you need diversity? Why do you need a mix of people from different backgrounds, men, women, beliefs, nationalities?

3:22Why does this matter? Because you often hear people say, I just want to hire the best person for the job, no matter what they look like, no matter where they're from, no matter if they're a man or a woman or whatever. That's a very simplistic point of view because diversity adds so much value that most people don't see on its face. And I learned this the hard way personally because I spent 20 years building businesses and intentionally try to find different kinds of people to join my team. I'm doing this intentionally so I can be popular or so I can tick the diversity box in my good deeds notebook.

3:57But it's because I know when I have people with different ideas, different backgrounds, different beliefs, I'm going to create a well-rounded, more interesting product or service, a more interesting event in James's point of view or example. When you group together really smart, interesting people, but they all kind of have the same cultural background, beliefs, understandings, way of life, perspective, you get a very one-sided experience. But when you get a variety of people from different backgrounds with different perspectives, with opposing perspectives, even this creates magic. This creates a very, very impactful experience.

4:40This works for any kind of business, product, service, event, because now you're getting so many different influences and inputs to impact your business. This makes things so much more interesting. Secondly, you are going to attract a more varied and wide audience. You're going to attract people with different perspectives because you have that represented in your business. It's not one-sided. When you do this, people feel heard. They feel seen. They feel like, hey, this person gets me, this company gets me because they're making an effort to find somebody that represents me. This makes a big deal and allows you to have an incredible advantage at connecting with your audience.

5:23The people involved in your event, James, they're going to be able to inform your event and help you make it better because you're getting, again, fresh perspectives. You're not getting the same types of people that are giving the same feedback. Not only are you going to get this feedback from the speakers that you're inviting, but the people that are going to come because of the diversity of the speakers. You see how there's a domino effect here? Lastly, diversity doesn't just mean people from different backgrounds or ethnicities or skin colors or sex or race or whatever it might be. It also means diversity of professional background.

5:58I run a very small retreat conference for entrepreneurs called OzCon in Australia. And one of the pieces of diversity we like to have is a mix of types of businesses. So we don't like to have everybody from like software. So we have some founders that run software businesses, some in e-commerce, some that run agencies, some that are in podcasting, some that are coaches, some of them are in real estate. That diversity of background, of professional background, gets you different ideas to solve the same problem, right? You'll have a problem like getting new leads. When you get different people from different backgrounds, they're going to come with fresh ideas that work in their industry that you may have not thought of in your industry that you can adapt and differentiate and help grow your business.

6:43Now, how do we help James out with this situation? Because he says that he is trying, but there's not a lot of diversity in his market, in his genre, in his industry. The first thing I would say is challenge yourself with that assumption. Challenge that assumption. Is there really nobody or am I not really mixing with different people from different backgrounds in my industry? Ask yourself, when's the last time you had lunch or coffee or dinner with somebody that's different than you? Somebody that doesn't look like you? Somebody that doesn't represent your way of life? If you could think of a time, awesome.

7:17How often does that happen? Once a year, twice a year, once a month? How does that compare to the rest of the meetings you have? the point here is that you have to make an effort networking meeting people it's just not going to fall in your lap you can't just say well i don't know anybody that is you know different from me well that's the problem right you have to make an effort because it's easy for me just to hang out with people that look just like me that come from my background it's simple we understand our inside jokes and our cultural references it's comfortable right it takes a little effort for me to find and meet people that are different from me.

7:53Somebody that maybe is running a Chinese podcast and is trying to grow in the English market. I guarantee there's a ton I can learn from that kind of person with that kind of background, with that kind of experience. So your first job is to just make friends with people that are different than you in your industry. They're all not going to be rock stars. You're going to find a few people that are going to be like, you know what, you'd be amazing for my event. And sometimes it's going to take a little bit of encouragement for you. It's this to be true, especially with women. Men tend to have a lot of confidence, unfound confidence sometimes, and will say yes to every opportunity, even if they don't think they can do it.

8:31They just kind of say, I'll figure it out, right? For better or worse. That's just my experience when it comes to inviting men to speak at a conference or something like that. Women, on the other hand, they undervalue themselves. They don't really see themselves as experts, even when they are. Of course, this is a generality, but this is just my experience. There's plenty of confident women that put their hand up and can kill it confidently. So in these situations, I will have to really encourage this person and say, hey, you can do this. We really would love to have you at the conference. You would add so much value and I'll show them how much value they would add and what I think they can do and how they can impact the group.

9:10I know this coming in. I don't just send them an email and say, hey, I'd love to speak. And they kind of say, no, I'm not sure. And I just ghost them. No, I understand the reality of the work it takes for me to have the value of a diverse group. It takes work. So if you're willing to put in the work, this can definitely be doable. Now, obviously, some markets are going to be harder than others, but you still need to make the effort. Now, how to respond to these comments. Number one, thank them for their feedback. Thank you so much for letting us know how you feel. Thank you so much for the comment.

9:44Thank you so much for the feedback. Kill them with kindness. It's okay. Say thank you, okay? And then ask them for their help. Hey, thank you. You're probably right. You make a good point. Do you have any suggestions of some great speakers that can add to our conference, that can add to our event? Who do you know that can really diversify our background? I'd love an introduction. Be open, okay? When somebody gives you feedback, no matter if it's harsh, mean, horrible, open up, be kind, and ask for help. You'll be surprised. Either they're not gonna respond whatsoever, or they might respond and help you out.

10:21And I've seen this happen in my own personal experience. Worst case scenario, people see your response and see that you're actually willing to do what it takes to have a diverse event, have a diverse business. Celebrate your effort as well. So if, for example, your last year's conference had 20 % women on the speaker panel or on the speaker list, and this year you have 40 % say, hey, we've improved. We've gotten to 40%. Our work is not done, but we're moving towards our goal of having a really balanced and diverse group of speakers at our event. And maybe somebody will still hate and say, you know, that's not enough and that's horrible and all that kind of stuff.

11:00That's okay. Guess what you're going to do? Thank them. Thanks so much for that feedback. Thank you so much for letting me know how you feel. You're right. It's not enough. We're going to keep on working hard. Watch this space. Kill them with kindness. Accept the feedback. Keep moving forward. Because essentially, by doing so, you are making a better event. James, I hope that helps. And I hope that helps everybody who's listening today on Q &A Wednesday. If it did, hit subscribe, hit follow on your favorite podcast app. Before I go, I want to leave you with this. I grew up in an immigrant family.

11:31My parents immigrated from Egypt to the U.S. I grew up feeling different. I was a minority. My name is Omar Zinhome. No one knows how to pronounce my last name growing up. People didn't understand that Egypt had cars. They thought they had camels. I'm brown. I don't look like everybody else in class. Where I grew up in Long Island, New York, my family's Muslim. I was so jealous during Christmas time. You know, you name it. I felt different. Growing up, I never saw somebody like me as a successful entrepreneur. in the papers. They all look like Tony Robbins, honestly. Now we have a whole lot more diversity in the business world.

12:07But one of my motivations when I was starting out 20 years ago as an entrepreneur was to be that person, was to be maybe somebody that is looking to go into entrepreneurship that looks like me, can see me and say, hey, I guess it's possible. Somebody that's like me and from my background and my understanding can become successful as entrepreneur. An example, human beings are funny. We got to see it to believe it. Now imagine you can do that for so many people who want to get into whatever your business is or your genre or your niche. You're able to show them themselves. You can show them that, hey, this is possible.

12:42What a gift. Thanks so much for listening. And I'll check you in Friday's episode. I'll see you then. Take care.

13:00Thank you.