Constructive Criticism is Healthy for a Leader

Nobody is perfect.

Criticism helps the development of all and so as a leader it is important to be able to graciously accept help. It can be helpful to think about it and make use of the advice given by the person. As you have been chosen to lead an organisation, its vision and goals to the next stage it is important to use criticism to grow.

Constructive criticism helps identify key problems and guides towards improvement.

• Getting New Ideas:

Each leader aspires to build an environment of feedback and openness. It becomes a goldmine of fresh ideas and recommendations that when channelled courteously, can move the company’s objectives ahead and help an individual to improve.

• Learning Opportunities:

It is learning (constructive) that allows us to take effective action because we know how to use it for personal development. Blaming someone else is the default reaction, and it stops us learning.

• Build Relationships:

Listening to criticism is going to help us build an honest relationship with ourselves. Listening to people will also build a good relationship with others, which is a win-win situation for us.

• Helps You Improve:

Therefore, it opens up new thinking and it may bring a new strategy that you had not been contemplating. If you do not consider the critics who are constructive; then you fail to develop yourself with those different perspectives or ideas.  Feedback is an important part of your personal and professional learning process.

How to handle constructive criticism

Pause before responding

Before you react, pause: a few seconds of mental paralysis will help get an unwanted expression and body language. This will help you get things under control, and your brain puts itself into a thinking and nonemotional mode (critical thinking and questioning) Even when you know that the criticism is warranted and constructive, you’ll still respond in a stronger way than if you didnt pause for a second or two. There is a technique called ABC which stands for Always Be Curious. It helps us to slow judgements and go into question mode to collect information instead.

Avoid getting defensive

The first reaction to feedback is to take a defensive position and argue with our view. It can be quite natural to defend your values and views. Giving negative feedback is difficult and nerve wracking so we should appreciate how hard it may have been to provide it.  We are not going to encourage trust in another person for being open with us by redirecting the blame or defending ourselves. This could actually create more tension in the relationship.

Don’t take constructive criticism personally

Feedback is not an attack on you as a person, it is most likely about a specific behaviour or a task. Nothing bad has happened, and it is just feedback. Only words. It is an opportunity to continue to grow as a leader and to listen to other peoples viewpoints.

Listen and Understand

Now that you successfully resisted reacting in a negative way, understand more of the situation, and remember that this feedback will pay off for you if you put it to good use. Have a constructive, thoughtful conversation. Listen carefully to the content of the conversation and not attack the person in defense. You can try to put yourself in their shoes. When they’re done, repeat back what you heard, such as ‘Here’s what I’m hearing you say…’ This will make it more comfortable for them to keep being honest with you. The clearer you can get about the request or concern, the better you can create a plan about how you will respond. Be sure they feel appreciated for letting you know the feedback as it probably wasn’t easy.  Appreciation doesn’t mean agreement, but it does mean recognising the person’s efforts.

Reflect on constructive criticism and ask questions

Now you need to process the feedback, clarify, and share your point of view. If you honestly disagree with the constructive criticism, you shouldn’t just agree, you should say that: ‘No, I don’t think that’s true. I did not realise this was how it made you feel, and that’s great that you were able to share it with me. I would say from my perspective I feel that…’ The next step is also a deconstruction that asks for specifics: ‘Can you share where in the meeting you felt I reacted this way? Opinions are like colours. Everyone is entitled to their favourite.

Make a Plan

Next, go somewhere you can feel safe, and mull over what you learned; then address how you’re going to fix what happened, make a plan; and, this way, stay present with what you can do about it, instead of feeling bad. When you’ve learnt something and figured out what you’re going to do about it, then there’s no more room to procrastinate. You’ve done your work, you’re ready to drop it or fix it and move on.

Work on Building a Growth Mindset

We don’t like being criticised, even when it is constructive (usually dubbed ‘feedback’). Some of us even thrive on it. The first step is to have what’s known as a ‘fixed mindset’ and the second have what’s called a ‘growth mindset’. People with a growth mindset believe that personal growth and positive change are possible – and they see ‘feedback’ as such an opportunity. You can learn how to create a growth mindset here.