You're dealing with the demon of external validation. You can't beat external validation. You want to know why? Because it feels sooo good.
Deeds, not words shall speak me.
People will buy anything that is one to a customer.
Man is only miserable so far as he thinks himself so.
The discovery of a new dish does more for human happiness than the discovery of a new star.
If our early lessons of acceptance were as successful as our early lessons of anger, how much happier we would all be.
A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon it adds up to real money.