The characteristic shared by people at the top of their profession is that, to get better, they crave criticism. Most people don't like criticism, but if you are trying to shave two tenths of a second at 800 metres, that is what you crave.
Sebastian Coe
Motivation Monday - Richard's Insight
Seb Coe here uses the word criticism to describe how he liked to improve as an athlete and I suspect beyond in his various incarnations too.
I prefer the word feedback, yet the concept is exactly the same - taking in information on our performance with a view to improve. It's all about personal growth.
Note how he talks about seeking out the criticism or feedback. What is the point of doing things if we don't check how our performance is being received? If we want to improve then we need to get insights from others, as we sometimes have a blind spot, or quite simply, people see things differently to us.
Finally, he also talks about marginal gains and that is another excellent point to note. Sometimes we make giant strides in our progress and development, however, most of us will take lots of small steps forward instead. It's a mix and match approach.
So the next time someone gives you feedback or 'criticises' you, simply say thank you and take it as a learning opportunity instead. We should be grateful to have an opportunity to grow after all.
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