Knowing how to give good constructive criticism can even be considered an art, knowing exactly what we should say to be concise and convey our message without the other person taking it badly or hurting their feelings is the key to good constructive criticism, however, depending on the situation, we may not know exactly how to approach the issue or how to get our opinion across without offending the other person.

This is why from Bekia we bring you the keys to make good constructive criticism depending on what your situation is, in order to achieve the desired effects without the other person taking your opinion as a personal attack. So if this is what you were looking for, do not hesitate to continue reading this article to find out everything you need to know.

APPLY TO THE INTERLOCUTOR

Depending on the person we are going to contact, we must do it in one way or another, it is not the same that we are an employee and we want to criticize our boss than if the situation were the other way around:

• If you are the boss and you want to criticize an employee : Talk to him from an equality point of view, try not to do it in front of his colleagues , ask him what his point of view is and how he would think the situation could improve.
• If you are the employee and you want to criticize your boss : Try not to contradict your boss but to add to his argument, for example, instead of saying I don’t think the same, you could say, I understand, but what if …
• If you want to criticize your partner : Put yourself in your partner’s place, do not take the attitude of a boss but that of a friend, try to express your criticism as an advice towards his well-being within the company, try to make him see that you care about him and that you are only trying to help him

CHOOSE THE RIGHT TIME

The first thing we must control is the time and place where we want to make that criticism. We should not do it hot when what we want another person to change has affected us a lot, nor should we let too much time go by . Generally, these kinds of situations should take place in a quiet place and preferably in private, we should not make it too intimate so that the other person is not predisposed to the worst, but the most appropriate thing is that any criticism is transmitted in an environment where the rest your colleagues or friends do not find out about that conversation.

TAKE CARE OF THE WAY YOU SAY IT

Perhaps this is the most delicate and is that the way in which we address the other person can make them react in one way or another. It is best if the tone we use is positive, reassuring and conciliatory . The objective of making constructive criticism is for something to improve, not to crush the other person or make them feel bad, so the best thing is that we ourselves are relaxed in the way we speak and that we communicate our wishes to the other person as we would like you to communicate them to us. The key here is empathy.

CONTROL BODY GESTURES

This is very important because most of the time we are not aware of our body gestures and this can make our attitude towards this problem look too angry and that can lead the other person to feel insecure or even react in bad ways. If what we want is a positive response from the other person, we must use body expressions such as open arms, a clear look and a serene gesture.

REINFORCES POSITIVE ASPECTS

Ideally, before criticizing someone, we denote that what they have been doing so far has been good or correct. Anyone would like a criticism if it sees it as simply a suggestion to do it differently or to change something, instead of expressing that we do not like it at all. Highlighting the positive aspects of someone or their work is something that all people like and it makes them feel valued so if this comes before making a constructive criticism, that person will not only take it better, but they will probably want to. improve that aspect by feeling valued.

BE CONCRETE

Once the positive aspects of someone have been highlighted, the ideal will be to openly address the aspects to improve. Constructive criticism is not destructive criticism, so even if we have to say what we do not like, we must approach it from a different point of view: it is not that we do not like something, but that we believe that it can be improved. We must be specific and not go around too much to get to the subject, we are aware of what we want to change so we must be very specific to say it, we must not be afraid to approach the subject because if we go for others On the other hand, the other person may feel confused and not know what you wanted to get out of that talk.

HOW TO DEAL WITH A BAD RECEPTION OF CRITICISM?

As is normal, once we give our point of view of a situation, we must let the other person express to us what they think of everything we have said. The normal thing is that, if we have expressed ourselves correctly, taking into account the situation and being careful with the feelings of the other person , it is that the reaction of that criticism is positive and that we see a change in that person for the better.

However, the problem comes when despite all this, the person who has received the criticism does not take it well. At this point, the ideal would be to reinforce the positive aspects of that person or that situation and emphasize that what we are exposing is a specific aspect that we believe that person can do better because they have that capacity to do so. From here we could try to expose the criticism in another way so that that person understands what we want to say.