You are not alone. No one likes being judged or feeling as if they can’t do any better. However, constructive criticism can be a helpful tool to ensure you gain valuable skills. Skills needed to achieve your goals and find your success. Thankfully, there are many things you can do to better cope and handle criticism.

Listen Before You Speak or Act

You can easily misunderstand people if you allow your emotions to take over without listening to the other person. Initially, criticism doesn’t feel good, and all you want to do is make excuses or run the other way instead of listening through your positive filter. When your emotions cloud your judgment, you don’t think clearly or rationally.

Don’t think about what you feel now or want to say. Focus on what others say instead. Ask them to repeat it. Be clear you understand them and their message first. Then develop a response or say thank you. Just because someone provides criticism doesn’t mean it’s negative, automatically correct, or requires justification or thorough response from you.

Reflect and Dissect It

Please take in what the person said and identify it for a moment. Is it constructive or destructive criticism, and are they right? Does this person stand with you when you need their support? Not every criticism is honest, accurate, or worth your time.

Find and Assume the Positive

Always assume what people are telling you or saying is positive. Let them be the ones to correct you. Then you know for sure their true intentions are not to help you anyway. Therefore, their criticism is a waste of your time, even thinking about it for one moment.

Ask Questions

While you want to assume the positive, please don’t assume you know everything nor act like it. If you are confused by the feedback, ask questions to clarify. This way, you have a moment to dissect the feedback and ensure it’s beneficial for your time. Take this moment to ask them for examples or ideas to understand further. Even if you disagree with their criticism, it provides an excellent opportunity to learn and gain a different perspective.

However, stop giving other people’s opinions too much weight or importance if you see bias. While criticism can provide value, it shouldn’t prevent you from being yourself or cause fear. Train yourself to focus only on the value you receive.