Have you ever noticed how many people are willing to criticize and how many are actually there to encourage you even in the most difficult moments?
I’m sure that most of them easily recognise others’ mistakes, but when they themselves make mistakes, they find many reasons to justify them.
The truth is that nobody is exempt from mistakes. All of us at one time or another in our lives have acted in the wrong way.
And at that moment, all we don’t want is people pointing their fingers. What’s the use of being so critical towards the other and so benevolent towards yourself?
Do as you would like to be done with you
When you make a mistake and acknowledge it, how would you like to be treated? Think about it, and take the same attitude you would like them to have towards you.
If you are in a company where the leaders are very good at pointing out mistakes, but never praise your qualities, you will certainly lose motivation.
Criticism, as long as it is constructive, is good. But encouragement is even better. Encouragement makes you see your mistakes without having to point them out.
And when we are encouraged to improve our faults, we certainly feel up, understanding that we can do better from then on.
Put yourself as a true coach
Ideally, you should have the ability to put yourself as a true coach to help your team members. Think that your team has to go up and not down.
When you only point the finger and show the person’s defect, you are putting them down, making them feel diminished and even incapable.
And when someone feels incapable of accomplishing something, certainly their production will be lower, and you won’t be able to form an engaged team.
As I said, constructive criticism is good, no doubt. But it must not be so routine in the life of your department or company.
After all, little by little, when someone only receives criticism, he or she becomes so discouraged that they lose that sparkle in their eyes.
Encouragement creates great professionals
When someone makes a mistake and you encourage them by showing them that next time they will get it right, you are certainly doing something more than few others do.
You are showing empathy. You are putting yourself in their shoes and acting the way you would like them to act towards you. And there’s no price to pay for that.
Empathetic leaders are rare in today’s world, and the few that do exist have a tremendous capacity to build empathetic, collaborative teams.
That is why, when someone in your team makes a mistake, before you start pointing the finger, think about it, and encourage this person. Be sure that in this way, the success of that professional has a little bit of your finger.
