(This is a short article I needed to get off my chest, I’ve been writing tons for the next couple of weeks)

I moderated a panel yesterday with 4 really bright people in the food tech space.

It was packed! Wow, so many people are here!

I thought the panel went well, my friends congratulated me, but something happened.

I got negative feedback. Not from just one person, but three.

Two said I was bad at managing the mic volume, one said I mistakenly called a woman who had a question, a girl.

This was the first time I received negative feedback from a speaking gig, and I felt terrible, I won’t make those mistakes again, but it made me question the fact that people hated the talk so much, they would come up and say these things in a very condescending tone.

Negative feedback, from random strangers, is a special kind of pain. One that randomly prevents you from sleeping in stressful nights.

But then I remember a special book I just finished reading. That it’s not for them.

The content and value we brought talking about food science were not for the haters or the non-believers.

It’s for the three people who came up afterward and asked me how I started the podcast, and how they can start making an impact in the world of food. I passionately gave them my response and asked them to contact me if they have any questions because I want dreams to come alive.

It’s for the people who’ve seen me speak, multiple times, and said “good job”

It’s for them.

I won’t make those mistakes the haters said again, I am grateful they came up and taught me how I could improve my craft.

But instead of having it haunt my sleep, I need to focus on the believers who want to make a difference in the world.

(This article was supposed to published this morning but wordpress did something whacky and I couldn’t publish! It’s fixed now)