From the time you wake up in the morning till you go to sleep at night, there will be always someone to criticize. They are always after your life choices, actions, work, family etc… It’s an inescapable daily vortex that we all get sucked into. Criticism is one of those of annoying daily irritants that we all have to deal with. How you handle these criticisms will decide what you will become.
If you yield yourself into this cycle of criticism, life will be in utter chaos, if you don’t defend criticisms, you will lose your self-respect. So what will you do? In this article, I will be discussing five steps to manage those daily criticisms without getting stressed out.
- REFUSE TO TAKE NEGATIVE CRITICISM TO YOUR HEART
Never expect people to be on board with you all-time in the decision you make. Even if you mind your own business and go forward in life with your choices, still there are people who will choose to come after you to belittle you and mock at the decisions you have made. Don’t take it to your heart. One of the most important rule in encountering negative criticism is to refuse it. We need to always keep this one important aspect in our mind that when someone criticizes you, its a mere reflection of that person's personality, perspective and world view.
Refuse to take every negative criticism to your heart, especially, when someone attacks your integrity, productivity or reliability. Always be prepared for resistance when someone hits you in those areas. So let me give you a tip to deal with this challenge! You have to be very very strategic. Criticism can lead to conflict if poorly managed- Yes, you read it right, if you are not going to handle the criticism properly you will end up having a serious conflict with everyone around you. If you do things different from what others expect, they won't be delighted nor be in good terms with you.
However, sometimes we allow their opinions and thoughts to impact on our self-esteem, confidence and the quality of our relationship. Remember, we don’t have to always please others! Neither live for their approval. So don’t need to take their criticism to their heart.
- MAKE RATIONAL DECISIONS BEFORE YOU RESPOND
You know, with time, experience and evaluation, you will easily overcome the stress of negative criticism. When others correct us, disagree with us or point out what they consider to be our faults or shortcomings, don’t rush to conclusions or give a betting response. Rather, take time to evaluate the rationale behind that criticism.
Does it have any educational value or just a personal bifurcation? Being patiently evaluating criticism is a virtue. In this way, you don’t allow your emotions or feelings to dictate your life. So you are on full control of that aftermath of that criticism. This is yet another way of keeping our emotions & feelings grounded from eruption when others criticize.
- GIVE SOME TIME FOR EVALUATION
When someone criticizes you or your work, it can be taken as a personal offence or as a learning curve. It all depends upon, how you evaluate that criticism and respond. How we perceive criticisms determine whether we feel we are being unfairly attacked or we are being lovingly supported. If you don’t strategically evaluate the criticism, then you lose your patience and try to yell or shout and break the relationship. Don’t get triggered, stressed, rather allow your cerebrum to think and evaluate the situation. Instead of trying to figure out how you can get everyone to agree with you, concentrate on identifying your problems or the recurring tendencies that are preventing you.
Once you identify your problem, develop practical solutions that you can execute. Don't waste your time developing a plan which you know, you don't the means to execute. By changing how you think about a situation you change your emotional response to the situation. Let me give an example Imagine daily criticisms are like those weeds in your garden. You have to pull them out and make your garden beautiful. If you don’t pull it, it will outnumber the greenery and destroy the entire garden.
So when you look at your daily life as a garden, you have to realize that to maintain its beauty and integrity, you have to be motivated by the flowers and fruits that your garden can bear. Criticisms can disrupt your sense of self and stress you out.
- THINK ABOUT YOUR GOAL THAN SPENDING TIME ON CRITICISM
To eliminate stress rising out of negative criticisms, you have to be prepared to take effective action in your daily life by keeping Life’s goal. Start your day by focusing on works related to with the main goals of your life. How much you have contributed today! How my choices led me closer to my life How my interactions make me go closer to my goal How my inner/outer circle friends contributed to my growth in reaching that goal
When you have sufficient time spent on your goal throughout the day, these criticisms will never bother you at any cost. Learn to believe in yourself. Your worth is higher than that criticism. Don't let criticisms stop you from living the creative- stress-free life, that is within your reach. You have to develop and build that positive energy and confidence. When you constantly talk positively and refuse to take criticisms personally, you can focus on your well being & relentless improvement and leave endless fault-finding behind. Let me give you a caution!!!!
Conclusion
If you do not take this seriously, negative criticism can cause daily stress that will eventually turn into chronic stress that will affect your concentration, recurring anxiety, loss of self-confidence and lack of trust in yourself. If you don’t know how to manage daily criticisms, it will lead to medical complications like high blood pressure, asthma, and heart attack.