Latest / Prayer Before Work / S01E43 - RECEIVING HARD FEEDBACK
Transcript
- Sean Graver: So, what's your first reaction when someone tells you your work needs to be better? And be honest, because the first few seconds usually say a lot about us. Hey, welcome back. I'm Sean and welcome to Prayer Before Work. So Proverbs 1531 says the ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Life-giving reproof. So that's an interesting way to describe something that most of us instinctively want to avoid or dodge. I mean, criticism isn't comfortable, right? That's just true. The moment someone tells you that something's not working about your project or your approach or even your attitude, there's a reflex that kicks in. ⁓ defend, explain, minimize, maybe even diminish or dismiss the person giving the feedback. So here's what's on the other side of that reflex. If you can push past it, growth. Real, practical, hard won growth that you can't get any other way because you can't see all your own blind spots. Nobody can. The people who grow the fastest at work are usually not the most talented ones in the room. They're the ones who got good at receiving feedback and actually using it. But now not every piece of criticism is fair, and not every person delivering it is kind. But there's almost always something true buried in it. The question is whether we're willing to dig for it. That takes humility. And humility is not a sign of weakness. It's actually what makes us better. So let's pray. Father, I Soften up my defenses today. Where correction is needed, help me receive it with an open hand instead of a closed fist, and make me the kind of person who grows from hard conversations instead of running from them, and give me the humility to see myself clearly. Pray in Jesus' name, amen. Go make today count.