The Right Kind Of Criticism

I really do not like people giving me unsolicited and undesired advice. I doubt most people welcome it in their lives. I am all for constructive criticism, but let us face it; we get the other, more negative kind more often. The other day, I was confronted with it by someone I see a few times a year, on average. I laughed it off and moved on to another conversation. When I was younger, I may have been more defensive and insecure in my response.

We are our own worst critics, and we should really give ourselves a break once in a while. If I find myself criticizing myself for working on weekends when I do not need to, then I know I need a short break before resuming my regular routine. Instead of despairing that I have not had enough sleep in the last few weeks due to work, I just make sure to make the time, so I can catch up on rest. Not enough exercise? I simply have to make time to do it daily, and to do different types of exercise. Of course there are things about myself I cannot change or would not change at this point, such as my short stature or deviated septum. My self-criticism and the criticisms from others have taught me to accept my shortcomings, and work on the parts of myself that I can change for the better.

Of course when someone does give me constructive criticism I do make sure to be open to hearing and considering it in my mind. Sometimes I take the advice and sometimes I don’t; I consider that to be a good trait. After all, we are all teachers for each other, whether we are aware of it or not. Self-improvement for the right reasons is never a bad thing.