I have been pretty active lately on Reddit.
With (usually) providing insightful answers, or dropping a free guide about freelancing or niche blogging in a relevant thread.
There was a question asked about dropshipping, which I answered and got flooded by dozens of DMs for advice. Because I ran a successful dropship store that made over 2M+ in revenue per year.
I expected some questions but within reason. My assessment was wrong.
So now, I wrote up this blog post to future-proof myself and instead of replying, I can drop them this blog post.
9/10 times I am NOT going to answer the way you want because of the following reasons:
- You ask me a generic question
- You want me to do all the work
- You want me to work “with you” with a promise to pay me later
I will shed some light on those.
Asking Generic Questions
I barely refuse a chat invite on Reddit. Because I am aware a lot of people need help. But don’t be that person asks:
- “Hey bro, can you help me with dropshipping”
- “Help me please. I have no sales”
- “I need tips to start a dropship store”
If you approach me with generic questions I simply cannot help you.
I am not there to spend my entire day solving YOUR problem for no pay. Harsh, but true.
People should realize that there’s the other side that’s most likely busy.
When one asks a question like this, the conversation can never end, because you end up in a rabbit hole that the provided answer leads to more follow-ups.
There are plenty of free resources online to read into that would give you perspective.
When do I answer?
When you have a specific question such as:
- My product page needs a review, can you take a look?
- I am choosing between niche A or B, which one is more profitable?
- How do I handle refunds or fraud purchases?
- Why do you use Spocket? I am considering using it
The more detailed you go, the better. I can provide an immediate answer in 1 or 2 small paragraphs, which I am happy to spend my time on.
Simply because it solves a particular problem that can help the individual forward and I can contain the situation without me doing all the research and work for you.
Me Doing All The Work For You?
No. Simply stop. There were instances that some had the audacity to ask me:
- Set up their store
- Find winning products
- Provide marketing insights
- Provide them a strategy
At no cost at all?
I could give generic questions a soft pass here and there, but this?
Never.
There are limits to what you can “demand” from someone.
My reply is often simple:
“Sorry, I can’t do that, unless you plan to hire me in 1:1 coaching or consulting. What you’re asking me is to do all the work for you, which I actually don’t do. There are tons of free resources out there, including YouTube videos that provide you the basics.”
Their response?
Crickets.
Besides, what good is it when someone else is going to do all the work for you and you have a lack of understanding in the first place.
It’s clear, based on your question, that you have not put enough effort into doing proper research.
No serious person ever said entrepreneurship in any form was easy.
“Investing In You”
This one is new. And I laughed when I read it. Twice
Someone reached out to me, and I am going to copy paste one of the first responses after saying hi.
“Like is it something that could potentially make bread online? We are not sure what we need to do exactly. If its something that interests you, you could consider this a business proposal too. What better way for us to learn than having someone experienced with us”
When I read that, I am already seeing the red flag.
So I kindly responded with a link to what I usually do for others, aka coaching and guidance.
And he replied:
“I have been offered paid services before aswell, but here is the thing. We want to get from point A to B first and if that happens then paying whatever the fee is wont be an issue anymore. We are not looking for someone to help us skyrocket this model, but rather get us global and get the cash flow.
Once we have cash ofcourse paying whatever requested is not a problem. I ask you to invest in us. Give us the right guidance and through your experience guidance once we succeed, your fee will be like peas in a pot. Let me know. And you can ask anything from me to know if im worthy.”
Do you see where the problem is?
- He reached out to me
- Asking if their model could work, which I said yes. Totally viable
- Wants someone to work for them that is more experienced
- Doesn’t want to compensate yet
- Promises to pay AFTER they reached profitability
What he doesn’t realize is that I have no upsides. I am supposed to teach them everything I know about their niche and industry.
Dedicate my time at no cost with a promise to get compensation later.
I told him that. I also asked in what scenario is my life getting better when I would simply attract more headaches. If you come up with such a proposal, it should be professional and transactional.
I get hired to do a job in a short time frame (3-6 months) so founders can go on their way.
His response was:
“But the fact on my end is that I wouldn’t get into making money if I had the money if that makes sense. I need guidance to make the money so that money can be used to pay off whatever it took to get there.”
Let me translate this for you:
He asks to make his life easy and others need to help him get there.
My problem with his response is that he clearly had no idea that millions of aspiring entrepreneurs are in the same boat as him. And yet they manage to launch their dream business.
Why?
- Because they started being creative
- Because they have developed a killer instinct
- Because they research more in-depth
We’re living in a world where people make millions of dollars with low-code and no-code tools at a fair or cheap price.
And most importantly, if this project was his final destination or goal, why not hustle your way to the top and make a couple of detours along the way to start self-funding it first?
If he would have come to me and said:
- I want to build X
- But I can’t build a business without money
- I need $$$, and I plan to earn some before building X
- Here’s my skill set, what do you suggest? I need a bit of guidance
This would have been a very different scenario. Because
- Showcases that X is the final destination
- Is motivated to self-fund it through different projects or side hustles
- Asks a direct question based on your current skill set
Am I overreacting?
I am going to defend myself and say no.
People need to respect boundaries.
I am all for educating others, it’s why I started The Super Hustle and why I started publishing free guides and insightful blog posts.
It’s also why I launched a Discord Community, so I can answer random questions there instead of living 24/7 on Reddit.
PS: The Discord server is invite-only, so please send me an email at jay@thesuperhustle.com to request one.
95% of the information I provide on this website is always free. The remaining 5% is paid coaching or detailed premium course material.
What Are The Exceptions?
I try my best to help others as much as possible within reason. Just like I offered someone to pay their debt because of the situation they’re currently in.
If I am the one willing to go the extra mile at no cost, then that’s a deliberate choice on my end.
That means I based myself on different factors that influenced my decision.
I don’t expect anything in return when I offer it, but I draw lines and it all starts with how you approached me.