How Criticism Helps You Grow Stronger and Undeterred?

Stay Undeterred and Get Stronger While Facing Criticism

Mihika was very sad and upset over the continuous criticism and negative feedback of her bosses as well as clients; she wasn’t able to figure out where things were going wrong and how to win the trust of the people around her. She was helpless and couldn't  gain popularity at her work place despite her strong work commitment and efficiency. She was putting in her hard efforts and dedication in whatever was assigned to her yet felt incompetent and humiliated whenever her colleagues or managers would find faults in her work. She was perturbed about her future and felt as if this situation was a career cul-de-sac. She was in a dilemma- was there an urgent need to cope up with the criticism in her professional life or to accept the ‘Quit Moment’?

We all face criticism in life, by friends, family, society or seniors and colleagues. It can be a performance review, employee feedback or a piece of advice (actually an implicit remark) by the elders or the extended family. Now the question that arises here is: do you feel killed by it or you give yourself  an extra chance to do a little better, next time?

To assess our own attitude towards criticism let’s do a small activity. Let's take a moment to think about the last time when you received a compliment and the last time when you received a negative comment. You must have felt very happy after receiving the compliment but how did you feel after receiving the criticism; certainly you were distressed about it and wanted to reject it. In a bid to avoid accepting ourselves as failures we don't want to listen to the critics' opinion and hence, give birth to an approach of being an escapist and mediocre for the rest of our life.

The great Indian mystic poet of 15th century, Kabir Das says, we must always have a fierce critic in the vicinity as his constant criticism will purify our mind and soul and  fortify our intellect with his habit of finding faults in our actions. Indeed, constructive criticism forces us to evaluate our endeavors, honesty and guides us to boost productivity in life. Would you like to gain more insight on how criticism helps you grow stronger and undeterred? Let's read a little more to clarify this point-

 

Accepting Criticism Makes You More Coachable:

Being coachable means having the ability to learn and evolve with the instructions and guidance of our mentors, peers and sometimes our well wishers also. Staying rigid on one’s views and opinions about a situation or performance makes one intransigent and hinders one’s personal and professional growth. If you develop acceptance for a constructive criticism, you will certainly start improving upon your weaknesses, grow stronger and hone your skills. In a nut shell if you pay attention on expert’s criticism; embrace it with a positive attitude and have a realistic view on your capabilities and flaws you will certainly gain new skills faster and nurture the ability of introspection and retrospection, eventually becoming a better version of yourself. So learn to stay undeterred while facing criticism. Those who take criticism positively, always ask clarifying questions when confronted with conflicting or uncomfortable situations. They are always ready to give a try to new ideas and opinions.

Criticism Encourages Continuum:

Nelson Mandela spent 27 years of his life in imprisonment and faced a lot of criticism and injustice in his life, yet he remained unstoppable and continued his fight against racism and inequality. If taken as challenge; criticism boosts the continuum and never allows you to sit idle and be complacent after an achievement. It keeps you thriving on the challenges with a constant pursuit of perfection. It instills more Grit and Determination in your character because every time when you accomplish a task and face criticism; you become more determined to do things with stronger efforts and more energy.

Being Defensive on Advice Shows Cowardice:

Do you become defensive when someone gives you advice on maintaining a healthy life style, improving dietary and hygiene habits or to keep calm at workplace? Just think about your responses: do you give excuses on such advices? If yes, then certainly there’s a problem. When we respond with endless excuses to criticism; we actually deny seeing the opportunities that lie on our way to help us grow as a person; as an individual and thus we tend to avoid the person who gives us a valuable suggestion. Every time when you receive a suggestion to improve upon something, do you wheel out the same excuses and statistics? This practice shows cowardice and prompts us to react negatively to feedback instead of addressing the issues which really demand improvement. Dwelling on criticism also reduces the number of well wishers and friends in our life so learn to take criticism constructively and believe in “you could do better”.

Taking things in the right way, by the right people can do wonders in one’s life. Taking criticism on a positive note helps you look at things in an objective light that means you are paying attention on your work, life style, habits, behavior and professional attitude. Criticism is actually a gift in disguise, accept it wholeheartedly and invigorate your efforts to achieve the best.

At the same time it’s imperative to understand the source of that criticism also. It can be considered nebulous when done by an arrogant or self-obsessed person, so be clever enough to understand if you are targeted by the gauche people in the vicinity, observe if your critics look askance at your accomplishments or if somebody is trying to demean you for no reason. But even if you are trapped in such situation; I would say you are blessed, don’t take me wrong- what I mean to say that malicious criticism is also equally important in life; it teaches you how to stay undeterred, maintain equipoise and be at peace amidst this chaos of criticism and negativity and that’s the most important life skill in today’s scenario; keep yourself happy no matter how adverse the situations are! It will train you to distance yourself from NEGATIVITY and limit the influence of naysayers and haters in your proximity. If you stop engaging with such people; you will be able to devote your time and energy to maintain your happiness quotient.  

And staying happy is the sole aim of life!