Why Criticism Is Important in Business

| December 3, 2015

Why Criticism Is Important in Business

Most people are afraid of criticism. When you’re running a business, you want everything to go smoothly. You want your products and services to please your customers. Most small business owners have a lot invested in their business and hearing that something is wrong with it is always painful. Some business owners would slip into denial and try to ignore criticism, especially if it’s not coming from a customer or an investor, but from a friend or employee.

But that’s the worst thing you can do for your business. Being protective of your company, products, and services is bad for business. In fact, it’s one of the biggest reasons why people fail. You need to pay attention to what the critics say and here are some reasons why.

They’re Seeing Something You Don’t

Even if you believe that the person before you is wrong, it’s a good idea to investigate. That would allow you to see what you might have missed or ignored. The fact is that your critic is seeing something from a different perspective and probably isn’t as attached to the company as you are. You should appreciate their insight and investigate the matter thoroughly. If you’re right and your critic is wrong, no harm is done. But if they’re right, you have time to resolve the problem before it causes too much damage.

Growth

Critics drive growth, whether you appreciate it or not. For example, if a mentor keeps saying that your product or service isn’t as impressive as you think it is, it’s going to drive you to improve. That’s especially affective if the person who’s criticizing you is someone you like and respect. Business owners, especially small business owners, should take criticism as a way to improve. They should let critics push them to go further.

Many people think that this is a slippery slope but that’s not exactly true. Criticism will only affect you if you know there’s something missing and there’s room for improvement. But if you’ve done your absolute best and the critic is still not satisfied, the critic’s opinion loses value. That’s not a slippery slope. And that also leads to our next point:

Motivation and Resilience

Doubters are the best form of critics. They might try to shake your morale, make you doubt your ideas, and your efforts, but they can also strengthen your spine and make you more determined. It’s a great feeling to prove doubters wrong. It leaves you feeling triumphant and smug. It’s a guilty pleasure that you can revel in for a while. But that’s only after you succeed.

Before you succeed, doubters give you the grim determination to work hard and prove to them that you can succeed. When you run a small business, you face several odd and failures. During those times, you need something that would help and act as motivation. Doubters are just that. As you can see, there’s no need to shy away from criticism. In fact, you should use it to your advantage and get motivated to gain success.