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This post is part of a blog series on Brazen Careerist being sponsored by JobSTART101. They asked Brazen members to answer the question: What do I wish I knew before I started working? Here’s my response…
I wish someone would have told me, before I started working, to not take criticism personally.
Giving criticism is an art which not every masters. Some people use the ‘hambuger’ method, with the bun being something positive and the meat being the criticism. They lead in on a positive note, deliver the criticism, and then end on a positive note. Others just take the meat patty and slap you in the face with it. There will always be people who give criticism in a direct sometimes abrasive manner, which might even come off as rude. It can be hard to take criticism this way for any period of time without feeling like the person has it out for you. If you start taking criticism as personal attacks against you it can be hard to work with that person and create tension, inhibiting your work. The last thing you want is for your work to diminish. It can also make it hard for co-workers to feel that they can offer you constructive criticism if you take everything personally and get upset.
Try and always take the criticism as a positive and focus on how it could impact your work/project for the better rather then taking it as a personal attack of you as an employee. It is better to maintain a positive outlook and see criticism offered from a co-worker as their contribution to help your work reach its fullest potential, not to bring you down.
There may be times when you feel that someone’s criticism is getting excessive, or really feels like personal attacks. After all, it has been said, ‘When people start trying to pull you down you know you’re going places’. If you feel a co-worker is unnecessarily criticizing your work, or making personal attacks instead of focusing on the work, ask probing questions to get to the root of the problem; there could simply be a communication deficit. If it continues and creates a hostile work environment speak to your manager if necessary.
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Comments
11.22.10
In any work environment I've been in, especially ones in which co-workers have to function as a team, there are lots of opportunities for feedback to be given and received. Truly, many people are terrible at offering criticism "constructively," as they say. Often, someone with feedback will tell you what you're doing wrong/can do better. That is what you want to know, right? In order to excel in a professional environment, that is what you should want to know. A common need is also to know what one does do well. Without positive feedback, a person may be led to believe they are inadequate, even if they are not. That's where the "hamburger" method comes into play (great analogy used here).
It is very important that you mentioned the last part because it happens a lot more than it should. Those who you can never seem to please despite your noticably hard efforts and/or only serving them to their benefit is the only way to appease them (but no more than that), they are most likely trying to keep you under their thumb so that you don't out-perform them.
At times, it is hard to distinguish tactless criticism and condescending aggression, but it is a very important thing to learn. If anyone can offer good examples from personal experience, that would help me make my point much better.
12.10.10
Very interesting post. Mainly work output depends upon environment. It's truth. Burial Urns
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