Dealing with critics: Be curious (and check your ego at the door)
You can learn from anyone, no matter what level of experience, knowledge or even relevant skills they have. Some of the best people to learn from are your critics. Critics come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them are very mild and have your best interest at heart. Others are very harsh, but still wish the best for you. Then of course there are those who want to put you down or just hurt your feelings.
No matter what the intentions of your critic are, you can use the critique or feedback to learn and grow. Your primary attitude should be curiosity. Resist the urge to fight to protect your ego. If you bring your ego into the equation you close yourself to the learning opportunity and you turn it into a win or lose situation. Instead be curious about the meaning of the feedback and what you can learn from it, if anything.
Ask questions. Direct questions at your critic, about the reasons and intentions behind their feedback, facts that support their feedback, changes they would like to see, etc. Questions for yourself, about the validity of the feedback, whether there are things you could change to improve. Ask questions and learn.
You don’t have to accept the feedback. If you don’t agree it’s ok to say so. If you ask questions first, though, you show that you are serious about the feedback, and people love being taken seriously.
