My New Hero

Only a couple of weeks ago now, an e-mail arrived in my inbox with a link to a blog and very little other information, but the e-mail came from a trusted colleague and the link looked interesting. So I clicked it.

Quite frankly, it's overdue, but one of our own has taken it upon herself to give our industry the gift of anonymity.

Not only has the mystery blogger adopted an alter ego for herself, but she also offers to anonymously post anyone else's contributions.

Now why would anyone want this? Why would anyone do this? Why would this be a "gift" to the industry?

Good grief! Just take a moment to read some of the hateful, mean-spirited, angry, accusatory, and ill-tempered comments that have been left on some of my previous posts!

I don't much mind catching the flack for the posts I make to this blog — or for the posts I make to my personal blogs, or for the posts I make on Facebook, or for all the posts I've made on professional networking forums over the years. I don't much mind having a reputation as a "pot-stirrer" and I think that I do a pretty good job of shrugging off stupid, hateful comments from people who think they've got me all figured out from reading one post.

I am a real, live person. A working nail tech with nearly 20 full years of salon experience. I love my job and — usually — my industry. And, by putting my name and photo on every post I make to the Internet, it means that when I show up at a tradeshow booth or in a class or networking event, it's not uncommon for the other people there to know who I am. And sometimes that means receiving a hero's welcome, but more often than not it means being shunned, or feared, or scolded, or ridiculed. It has certainly meant eating a lot of lunches alone.

I think I do a pretty good job of sucking it up and carrying on about my business. But I can certainly understand and respect this "Nancy Nailtech" for choosing to put herself out there incognito. This way, she gets to say what's on her mind without holding back at all, and she can still show herself in public without being mauled for autographs or having rotten fruit thrown at her.

Whoever she is, she won't have to worry about damaging her personal or professional relationships in real life. And the ability to comment anonymously means that you can be brutally honest without bearing responsibility for your own hatefulness, pettiness, or ignorance too. Or, you can type up your own post and e-mail it off and have it posted as a guest contributor — an anonymous guest contributor. Which means that your clients won't inadvertently Google a post you made about how much something they do makes you crazy. It means that you can let off steam about your boss or your coworker without fear of retribution.

Sometimes people need a chance to let off a little steam without worrying about the consequences. We are a complicated species. It's possible to be angry or outraged about something or someone and still like that thing or that person and not want to damage the relationship.

Whoever "Nancy" is, I applaud her and thank her for the contribution she is making to the industry.