Hallie was honored to be featured in a recent Glamour.com article about how to make your work day go faster. As a follow up to this article, we wanted to share some additional tips with you.
Criticism is not always a bad thing. Actually, receiving criticism at work is critical for career growth. We need to know how we’re doing at our jobs, and if there are areas we can improve. Ideally we’d like it to be constructive criticism, but we don’t get to choose, and it doesn’t always come across that way.
- Respond positively. It’s important to respond positively because if we are unable to react positively to criticism, it can make us appear hard to work with and not open to growth. In some cases it could cost you your job if it’s very specific feedback on an area you are responsible for. Employers want employees who are interested in growing, learning, and confident enough to be open to feedback.
- Focus on what was said. Try to focus on the criticism itself, not on the way it was said. If you can’t understand why you have received a certain criticism, ask the person providing the input to give examples of how you can implement what they have said for clarification. And let them know you’re willing to work on it.
- Let it sink in. Our natural reaction is to defend our actions and look for a way to dismiss any criticism. Try to avoid that and just let it sink in. Don’t feel like you can do your job however you want and no one can tell you what to do. If you work for an organization, they have certain ways that they want things done, and they expect their employees to conform to their systems. Employees who aren’t willing to accept criticism usually don’t last long, or don’t get very far in their careers.
- Decide how you will implement the criticism immediately. After your boss has spoken with you, take some time to think about how you could start to adjust what you currently do at work to apply what was said. If your boss has given you specific examples, make sure to put them into practice the next time you perform those tasks.
Try to view criticism as an opportunity to become a better version of you. Generally speaking, criticism at work has to do with your tasks at work, not other aspects of your life, so don’t take it personally, keep it professional.
