What do you do when someone criticizes you?

Here is another example of a behavior-based type of question. But this time, the focus of assessment is on your personality. Interviewers use your personal character as one of the basis in gauging your work personality. Remember that how you are as a person also reflects how you can be as a working professional. This kind of question tests how well you handle criticisms. Your reaction to criticisms and feedback on your performance tells your level of maturity as a professional.

Criticisms are usually associated with negative comments about an individual's capacities toward something. But the truth is criticisms are meant to help a person improve on areas that usually do not fall under individual strengths. This is meant with the best of intentions for continuous improvement in both personal and professional aspect. In a corporate setting, it is normal to receive feedback and criticisms for your quality of work and performance.

Keep it Positive and Constructive

One surefire way to impress a potential employer is to answer this question with a positive remark. First off, show that you know how to acknowledge criticisms by responding that you see it as an effective means of self-development. Tell them that you associate criticism with helpful comments or feedback rather than negative remarks about you. You can even mention the words positive and constructive to also describe the way you deal with criticisms from people.

Mention an Example

Giving an example or experience is one of the most of effective ways to support a main point. Your interviewer will be interested to know how you honestly dealt with criticism. Since you are applying for a job, quote your experience from a previous work setting. It gives the impression that apart from personal comments, you have the right attitude for the job. You can be viewed as a mature working professional by your potential employer.

In sharing an example or experience, keep it short as always. Provide the gist of your story and maintain an affirmative choice of words. You would not want the interviewer to be asking several follow-up questions after gathering more than enough details from your story.

Highlight Self-Improvement

What every employer wants to find out is how you made use of the criticism to improve on a flaw or weak point. Let them know your action plans or what you did to rectify a negative comment about your performance or your personality. For example, a comment on your communication flaws may be acted upon with drills and practices to improve on diction and pronunciation.

Make it a point to highlight self-improvement after acknowledging weaknesses. Tell them that you appreciate the feedback and that you need it so you can become a better person.

This is how to simply answer a question about criticism. For the entirety of your response, the whole idea must be about taking criticisms with professionalism and positivity. It makes a good gauge in terms of your level of maturity toward work.

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Deep Gaurav

  • Sep 25th, 2016
 

Whenever I go for interview I get nervous and I fumbled during the interview. How can I improve on it, please help.

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