How to Give Criticism Without Sounding Like a Jerk - Deepstash
How To Give And Receive Constructive Criticism

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Understanding the importance of constructive criticism

How to receive constructive criticism positively

How to use constructive criticism to improve performance

How To Give And Receive Constructive Criticism

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Constructive Criticism: Use The "Sandwich" Approach And Be Specific On The Expected Results

Constructive Criticism: Use The "Sandwich" Approach And Be Specific On The Expected Results

"Sandwiching" your critique between two positive things about the person's softens the blow, and avoids it coming off like an attack. The mix of positive and negative makes people more likely to pay attention to the whole package.

Instead of being snarky and vague, explain why you think your criticism is valid and be specific and constructive about what you think would be an improvement. The former doesn’t inform much and makes people unhappy; the latter at least gives some ideas for improvement.

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Constructive Criticism: Give Feedback, Not Instruction

Keep your criticism to your observations, and the impact they have. Don't try to fix the problem, just identify it.

Offer to help fix the problem, and to support the solution that the other person comes up with. Unless you know how to do the work your coworker is doing, don't try to solve it for them—they'll ignore your feedback and you.

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Give Kind Criticism, And Remember The Point Of It

The point of your criticism is to help someone improve, or to correct a problem, and your feedbacks should carry that message. If you’re doing anything but that, reevaluate whether you actually have legitimate criticism to give, or you just need to talk to someone.

Offer positive and specific suggestions to alleviate the issue at hand, or identify the problem clearly without talking about the person, just the issue.

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Don't Make It Personal

Criticism by nature can be personal, but delivering it you need to separate your thoughts on someone's work or behavior from what you think of them.

Keep your constructive criticism focused on the specifics that you want to discuss, and avoid the temptation to make judgements of the person or their work based on the specific feedback you want to give. Remember, "you need to respond to urgent issues faster" is not the same as "you're slow." You want to communicate the former, not the latter.

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CURATED BY

addison_ii

Thinker. Hipster-friendly coffee advocate. Infuriatingly humble organizer.

CURATOR'S NOTE

Taking criticism is difficult enough, but giving constructive criticism can be really tricky, especially when you don't want to completely tick off the person you're talking to.

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