Does anyone know how to deal with critics in any sphere of life? The simple answer is no. We learn from our experiences and act accordingly.
No one likes criticism but we still face criticism at school, work, home wherever. Criticism doesn’t hurt us physically but shatters our mind and confidence. Most of the time the criticism happens in place of work and the fundamental way to deal with criticism is by taking the criticism in a positive way. Yes it is difficult to digest but if you have to improve, then learn to deal with them smartly. Thus you can avoid losing your self esteem, confidence and won’t feel stressed and agitated.
There are two kinds of criticism – constructive and destructive. If you ever face constructive criticism, it is actually very good. It lets you understand your weaknesses. It shows your past mistakes and avoiding those can help you attain your authority over some task or activity. Thus constructive criticism can be viewed as a boon. Destructive criticism on the other hand affects your confidence, self esteem. What ever criticism you face you got to deal with it smartly using the following steps.
#1 Listen first
Always listen to the person patiently who is criticizing you harshly. Don’t be impulsive in responding back. Being patient is the basic criteria you need to follow. Understand all the points what he/she said to you. Don’t immediately respond. Take your time in formulating your points.
#2 Politely respond to criticism
After listening, don’t yell at the person criticizing you. Politely respond by saying you will get back to all the points you are criticized for. There is no problem in taking some time as you will have sufficient time to explore on the points he/she mentioned. You can have look into emails and show your authenticity of your dedication or your well being or whatever the situation demands.
#3 Stay positive and talk with confidence to deal with criticism
Having confidence is key to deal with criticism. Your display of confidence often makes the person criticizing you rethink of their point whether he/she is correct from his/her end. Sometimes they themselves behave impulsively out of work pressure from upper management. Try to maintain calm and reply with confidence. You may often be mistaken that they are criticizing you but they are trying to get some work done from you in a short time. Just that they are not in a luxury to patiently ask for your help. You may be the best candidate to do the job but as your boss or the criticizer asking you to do it when you are busy in some other task doesn’t mean he is criticizing you. It’s just a new task is allocated to you.
#4 Walk away for the time being
When things go out of control, you are facing strong criticism and there is no stopping from the boss. In such scenario,simply don’t respond in that situation. Never react in that moment no matter how much difficult it may seem. But if you are able to show your calmness here, then you can handle criticism like expert. These situations are like a bait, if you go out of control and lose self control and become aggressive, it will put a very bad picture of you in front of your peers and other workers in the company. People will treat as an obnoxious person and you’ll be a laughing stock to your peers. You got to stay strong and thus simply walk away from the intense environment. You just tell your criticizer that you need some time to respond and walk away from there.
Now move to a different place and sit alone for some time, gather your emotions and points and validation point to your boss.This is the most important rule of handling criticism like an expert: however hard it is to accept, do not react at that moment.Once you step away, you create a distance between the words and its speaker. When this distance is there, you feel safer and your mind opens up. Now, you could walk around a bit to process your emotions. Then proceed to use logic to consider what they said, and return to carry the talk further. This is the best advice I can give to anyone wanting to know how to handle criticism positively
#5 Keep your cool to deal criticism
However much unpleasant the criticism, bear it without any immediate reaction. Don’t respond then and there. This is unarguably the best way to deal criticism.
Conclusion
Most of times as I said criticism should be analysed from the person’s point of view because most of the times it serves a learning experience to the individual. You need to take some time to understand your limitations or weakness on the basis of which you are criticized. If in doubt, ask your fellow colleague or peer who understands you well and discuss the matter and get an honest opinion. But if you know you have credentials viz- emails, worksheets to show your credibility, diligence and expertise on tasks where you have been criticized. Sit with your boss or the criticizer and discuss the matter with dignity and maintaining decorum. Life is all about learning from mistakes
