You are your Own Worst Critic

You Are Your Own Worst Critic

“You are your own worst critic.” Truer words have never been spoken. This especially applies when you’re sitting in front of an employer at an interview shaking in your Doc Martins when they ask you to describe yourself.  What do you tell them? How do you find the words to say that will make you more appealing? Well, I can’t tell you what those are, but I can tell you how you can find out what to say.

Always Smile. I can’t stress this enough! You can say almost anything as long as you say it with a smile! When you’re upbeat, employers pick up on that. They know when you’re unhappy and if you come off as an unhappy person, it could affect how they look at your resume. Yes, you may have fantastic credentials, but if you’re not going to get along with the rest of his staff, it’s like inviting a problem in through the front doors. So always remember to show those pearly whites when you first meet someone.

Make a Personal Resume. This is not to be confused with your work resume. Just like you make a grocery list, you should always make a list of your personal strengths (See The Resume Wiz’s article as well as ___ featured in this month’s issue). That is your personal resume! By knowing what you do and do really well, it will make it five times easier to speak about it to others. Do you parasail and shark hunt? Then put that on your personal resume! Do you macramé and stitch goat hair into purses? Throw that on the list too! Why? Cause not only are you an adventurous go getter who has creative solutions to every problem… you’re also prepared for any and all occasions. Making a list about your good points allows you to be prepared for any questions an employer throws at you about yourself.

Get Rid of Negative People. That little voice in the back of your head that tells you that you can’t do something sounds an
awful lot like Aunt Theodora, doesn’t it? Or, maybe your anti-Jimminy Cricket sounds likes your friend Travis. Sometimes the negative things that we feel about ourselves come from other people. When you allow other people to criticize you, you leave
yourself open to internalizing the negative energy that they are projecting on to you. Don’t do that. You are grown, you know what you need to fix about yourself. Don’t let Betty and Veronica over there tell you something that may not even be true.

Spoil Yourself. I don’t mean go to the spa or buy yourself a new toy every weekend. Just do little nice things for yourself that remind you that you are worth it. Maybe a street vendor is selling flowers on the side of the road, so pick up one for yourself. Is that a new SD card for your camera that’s on sale? Grab it! When you do little things for yourself, you remind yourself that you’re worth it. If you think you are worth it, then you are less likely to criticize yourself.

Accept Yourself. Do you know your shortcomings? Do you know what your weak points are? Can you name them by rote? Excellent, now stop it. You know what you don’t like about yourself. You’re either going to fix it or you’re going to accept it. There are things that we can change about ourselves through practice and dedication. Then, there are those things that are inherent to our personalities that aren’t going anywhere. Change the things you can and accept the rest. You cannot keep beating yourself up over things that make you who you are.

At the end of the day, that need to criticize yourself is really just a bad habit. It is one that is inside everyone and re-surfaces just when you think you’ve got it beat. Or it shows up at bad times like before a job interview or a test you have to take. With practice and a little diligence, you may not be able to get rid of that voice of doubt in your head, but you can at least muzzle it so that it doesn’t keep you from doing the things that you truly want to do!

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