True criticism is like a fertilizer which guarantees growing and good harvest. The access to criticism is difficult because it is delivered by only a few and really not many people can use it well.
Plants need fertilizers to grow. If you want to grow them following nature, use organic fertilizer. Criticism is such an organic fertilizer which let people develop.
What is criticism?
It is the best feedback you can receive. Unfortunately, we have wrong opinions about criticism which is not any judgment. The word comes from the ancient Greek word krino, krinein which means: “divide, split, separate”. So a person who delivers criticism shares his analysis and insights.
Does criticism hurt?
Most of us think about criticism as about something negative. But are we ready for criticism? It is like a microscope which lets us see more and understand more. So let’s treat it in rational and unemotional way. Usually it hurts if someone:
- is not confident enough,
- has low self-esteem,
- delivers personal judgment and not shares insights,
- uses such a situation to hurt another person,
- asks about criticism, but wants to be praised.
The aim is not to cope with criticism, but to use it effectively.
True criticism…
is about asking questions and having questions to ask. It should deliver a kind of discomfort, but this is a useful one. Thanks to this discomfort you get more confidence, you can see more possibilities and you develop. Criticism lets you see what you haven’t seen yet. It lets you verify your decisions. And the relation between people who practice it are based on much of respect.
Let’s listen to Aristotle: “To avoid criticism say nothing, do nothing, be nothing.”
Profreader: Marta Korsak.