We all have critics. They can be colleagues, friends, family, or a partner. A critic’s comments are an opinion based on the critic’s experience, knowledge, and biases. Don’t take the criticism personal (That’s not easy, especially when our ego is wounded). No critic has the full truth. They may, however, have a piece of the truth we need to listen to. Don’t let criticism ruin a relationship. When you have nothing to defend (e.g., the ego is behaving and under control), you have the perfect defense against a critic.
critics
Have You Thought About Your Unfulfilled Potential?
If I listened to my critics and those who didn’t believe in me, I’d still be living next the railroad tracks and hoping I had enough money in my checkbook to pay the rent. Don’t listen to the critics, naysayers, and those who try to pass their insecurities off on you. Go for it. Whatever it is, go for it. If it doesn’t work out, you gave it a shot and go for something else. There’s an endless supply of good ideas. There’s an endless supply of needs that you can fulfill. Don’t join in with the negative chorus and whack yourself. Be your loudest and best cheerleader. C’mon, you’ve got so much to offer. Listen to the inspiring words of Pope John XXIII, “Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.” Yes you can! Go For It.
To Critics ~ A Poem by Walter Learned
To Critics
Walter Learned
When I was seventeen I heard
From each censorious tongue,
“I’d not do that if I were you;
You see you’re rather young.”
Now that I number forty years,
I’m quite as often told
Of this or that I shouldn’t do
Because I’m quite too old.
O carping world! If there’s an age
Where youth and manhood keep
An equal poise, alas! I must
Have passed it in my sleep.
Today’s Thought:
I exercise when I get up in the morning. I listen to music streaming on my iPad while I exercise. Today, Apple was streaming new music. In one song, there was a line that stuck with me, “Any fool can criticize.” I was in the middle of a set of pushups when the song was playing and heard myself say aloud, “You got that right.” I continued to think about that line. Growing up, I was a playground kid. I’d play ball with whoever showed up. Occasionally, there would be a fight. it got over almost as soon as it started and we went back to playing ball. I don’t think about those things. If they’re in my memory, they’re tucked away in a well-hidden part of the brain. Yet, I can recall words spoken to me that cut me deeper than any carving knife could cut. Words hurt and the pain they inflict remains with us. We can’t take them back once spoken. Sorry, usually doesn’t do much to heal the hurt they caused. I promised myself that I was going to take extra care not to be a critic or to verbally attack another.
