How well can you take criticism? Recent evidence suggests that the millennial generation (Americans born in 1982 or after) may be handicapped when it comes to dealing with critical feedback.
Most of us see evidence of this social trend every day. How many times have you been in a class when the teacher is handing out graded research papers and heard comments like, “I can’t believe she did this to me; my GPA can’t handle this grade,” or “This guy is crazy. Can you believe how many points he counted off for that?”
These comments stem from our tendency to shift blame away from ourselves. Is this really a problem plaguing our generation, and if so, what caused it and how can we fix it?
A Feb. 16 article in USA Today titled “Yep, life’ll burst that self-esteem bubble” by Sharon Jayson attempted to diagnose this problem. According to the article, a social movement in the ’70s and ’80s aimed at promoting self-esteem of students actually resulted in parents and teachers “protecting” children from failure.
In retrospect this was probably more harmful than helpful. While self-esteem is very important to healthy development, the message of this movement was misinterpreted and became a reason to avoid hurting children’s feelings no matter the cost.
Charles Sykes is the author of “Dumbing down Our Kids: Why American Children Feel Good About Themselves but Can’t Read, Write or Add,” was quoted as saying, “Schools got sidetracked into worrying more about feelings; self-esteem has virtually become an official ideology.”
The political correctness movement is probably an equal contributor to this social policy. These two social policies are constantly pushed by educators and social reform groups. However, at what point should we stop patting kids on the back and instead teach them perseverance?
Other comments about our generation in the USA Today article were both alarming and insightful: “Jean Twenge, a psychology professor at San Diego State University, said she has noticed that the undergraduates she teaches tend to have an inflated sense of self.”
Andrea Sobel, director of recruitment for an entertainment firm, said, “One of the things the managers talked about is an incredible sense of entitlement for people who don’t deserve it; they’ll come in right out of college and don’t understand why they’re not getting promoted in three months.”
In an attempt to see to what degree this phenomenon exists on our campus, I interviewed Jeffery Haupt, a father of seven children and an associate professor of art at Mississippi State who has taught painting and drawing for eight years. I asked him if he felt it was more difficult to give tough criticism (which is the type that is most helpful in revealing areas of improvement to students) today than when he was a student.
He explained, “Yes, it seems like the times have changed. Some people take constructive criticism personally. When we were students, we felt fortunate to have any input from our professors.”
I then asked Mr. Haupt if he felt that his children could tell when praise was genuine and warranted. He replied, “Yes. Early on children can sense sincerity from their parents. I can’t say if they can tell from other authority figures.”
As a landscape architecture student with a minor in art, I would have to agree with Mr. Haupt. From my own experiences in classes that have involved critique, some people take the teacher’s criticism personally. This behavior is counterproductive and we as students have to realize that it is OK to be wrong and okay to make mistakes.
College is the perfect setting to make mistakes. I know some people are worried about their GPAs, and they should be, but not to the point that they feel they have to be perfect.
Responding positively to your instructor’s assessment will encourage him or her to be more thorough and specific in your critique. The more comfortable your professor is in pointing out weaknesses in your works or writing, the more insight he or she will share with you. This will ultimately lead to your improvement.
Tennessee Williams understood the value of failure: “I have always been pushed by the negative. The apparent failure of a play sends me back to my typewriter that very night, before the reviews are out. I am more compelled to get back to work than if I had a success.”
We should all take this same attitude with us, because we still have something to prove as a generation. The best strategy for success is to let your shortcomings become your motivation, not your discouragement.
James Everett is a senior landscape architecture major. He can be reached at [email protected].