Accepting feedback gracefully
I was reading through some blogs this morning and came across the following paragraphs:
‘one’s ability to gracefully accept — and apply — feedback from other people. For many professionals in transition, one of the biggest challenges they face (not that they always recognize it) is the difficulty of getting other people to provide them with direct, honest input in terms of their presentation skills, the clarity of their goals, their marketability, and how they’re coming across, in general. Think about it. Unless they’re sadistic by nature, your close friends and family certainly aren’t going to want to “go there” in terms of pointing out your flaws, mistakes, and blind spots — especially when they know you’re going through an emotionally-sensitive unemployment period.’
‘If you’ve attended a networking event or social function recently, just ask yourself whether everybody you encountered conducted themselves properly, professionally, and made a winning impression. Were there some people who seemed distant, arrogant, or unapproachable? Others who came on TOO strong to the point it seemed obnoxious or insincere? Others who blew you off? Or didn’t dress appropriately? Or kept interrupting you when you were talking? You get my point.’
via The Art of Accepting Feedback « Career Horizons: The Blog!.
This made me think of my reactions to feedback. I have had some criticism made about my appearance, in particular about my standard of dress, and I received some feedback or as they called it ‘constructive criticism’ from someone after I attended a network function almost a year ago.
They told me that an associate of theirs noticed me and made a comment about my appearance, I was wearing jeans and a polo shirt, which was standard for the job I had prior to attending this meeting. This person told me that I should think of networking events as pre-interviews, and should dress accordingly.
I took this criticism well, and stepped things up a notch the next time I attended this function. I wore dress slacks, button down shirt, tie, and was approached by this person at the event, who saw the change in me, and knew I had taken their advice to heart.
This goes with the saying, “you rarely get a second chance to make a first impression.”
I’m grateful to this person for bringing it to my attention, and know that they meant it in a helping way, because they want me to succeed. If someone tells you something, it’s likely others see the same thing, and it’s best to heed their advice.
So if someone offers you some constructive criticism, or feedback, let it sink in, and don’t rush to defend your actions so quickly. Hopefully you will have people in your network that can and will speak up, in a kind and considerate way when presenting this feedback, and you can learn and grow from it as I have.
Happy Reading!
-Martin
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