The Weirdest Business Questions I’ve Been Asked Over The Years

Today I’m going to share with you the weirdest blogging and business questions I’ve been asked over the years.

This one was on my mind for a while. I knew I wanted to cover it and it wasn’t until a few days ago when I was in the plane, during a flight, that I actually opened my laptop and wrote the outline.

I came up with the questions because I had to recall them from back in the days.

It was really fun to go down memory lane, not for the specific business questions I got, but for the fact that I feel differently about them now and I don’t get triggered at all.

The confidence you form as a business owner is a lifelong journey. It can always evolve. It can always increase, of course. But I wasn’t confident in who I was and what I was doing back then and people could easily get to me. Now, not so much.

Now I’m fine with the fact that they don’t really get what I do. They don’t really get why I do it. They can project their insecurity onto me, especially in terms of income and during economic uncertainty.

But that’s how it usually goes. I work on my mindset. I heal my issues.

But most people don’t, unfortunately. Then you can easily see the discomfort they have when I openly share something about my life or business. Now things are good again, financially speaking and in every other way in my life.

But last year and the year before that, not so much. And what did I do? I dove into personal growth more than ever. I became even more grateful than ever.

I didn’t even consider quitting business, not for a second. In fact, I devoted myself to it more than ever. I took full responsibility for what was happening.

I don’t want to blame the economy. I shifted my focus because at some point I was too focused on some shiny objects, on creating courses and wanting to be a full-time course creator. Now I’m back to blogging, which is sort of my zone of genius.

During those times of uncertainty, people were uncomfortable with me sharing how things are going. So I couldn’t really be honest with everyone. They couldn’t handle it.

But I kept my vision alive. I knew what I was doing, why I was doing it. I just didn’t know when things could get better.

But here we are now and I believe they can only get better. So without further ado, let me get into the questions.

The Weirdest Business Questions I’ve Been Asked

Some are weird, others are annoying, and some are just entertaining. Maybe you’ll get asked the same or have heard it already, but I just can’t forget them. That’s why I want to share them with you.

1. “How do you know you’re not writing an article for a terrorist?”

Number one in the list of the weirdest business questions has remained the same for over 10 years now. And it’s ever since I was writing freelance articles for clients.

I was still back in my home country, in university, and keeping in touch with friends from high school. People were curious about what I do and they didn’t really get it when I tried explaining.

But one girl asked, “How do you know you’re not writing an article for a terrorist?” or something like that.

This left me speechless and to this day, I can’t answer it. It’s not something I would ever worry about though.

That girl was the opposite of me. We didn’t get along most of the time. She was quite pessimistic. She didn’t believe in change or personal growth and wasn’t open to new ideas. Needless to say, she is not a business owner today.

The questions people ask can actually say a lot about who they are and how they view the world. So that question was one of a kind and I’ll never forget it.

2. But are you able to earn enough?

The next business question in this list is something I get very, very often.

It’s interesting that I only get it from people who don’t have a business, but also whose mindset is not entrepreneurial.

When I share what I do and add some details, they ask with pity in their eyes:

But are you able to earn enough?
Do you only do it on the side?
Can you make a living off of it?

It took me a long time to not be bothered or triggered by that.

Others project their own insecurities and uncertainty on us. As I healed and worked on that, I stopped getting triggered by it. Now I respond ‘yes’ easily and with a calm nervous system.

I share how the website is monetized in case they are curious. And I simply say that I’ve been able to provide for the lifestyle I live for the past 8 years or so and to move to quite an expensive country and live by myself.

3. Why do you work on weekends/during holiday?

Other business questions I hear often come from people with a 9 to 5, who can’t wait for the workday to be over and for the weekend to come. It’s when people are bothered by me doing work late in the evening, on weekends, on days off, or when I’m traveling.

They start feeling overwhelmed, but I am not bothered.

I simply explain that I absolutely love what I do. It’s my hobby, my therapy, and it’s also what has allowed me to live the life I love so much and to have all the freedom I need. And also that I can take a day off any day of the year and not work on days that I just don’t feel like working.

But when I do feel like it and there is nothing else to do, I would definitely do it and feel so good about it.

They often don’t get what I mean, but that’s fine. It’s because they think this is the same as their colleagues or manager emailing them when they are off from work or giving them tasks while they’re on a vacation or anything like that.

4. Can you help me make money online?

Here’s a question I don’t like getting, “Lidiya, can you help me make money online?”

I usually get it from strangers and via email. There are people who want a shortcut, who aren’t willing to do their research first, who don’t know enough to even ask a more specific question, and who just don’t have the right mindset for business, at least not yet.

They also don’t value my time and they want free coaching, but I think they have a lot of inner work to do first before they make any money online.

5. Can I work for you?

Here’s another fun question that I got 2 or 3 times in my life: “Can I work for you?” or “Can you hire me?”

I’ve got it many years ago from people in my life who actually believed that I’m earning enough online and because it looked easy for them, they asked if I can get them on board without even knowing what I do exactly.

I simply said it’s a one-man business and there is nothing I need help with and I like to keep my personal life and business separate.

Random people have also emailed me for that, but that’s less surprising. When someone who has nothing to do with your business and industry from your real life asks you this, then it’s funnier.

6. Aren’t you scared of exposing your information online?

I also recently heard this from someone: “Aren’t you scared of exposing your information online?”

That person didn’t even know details, but heard there is a website and that I’m sharing things with my audience and was immediately anxious about the security aspect of this. I simply said I’m fine with it and there has never been an issue and I left it like that.

7. So, you’re a coach/influencer?

I also often hear questions like, “So, you’re a coach?” or “So, you’re an influencer?”