Filter Criticism through LOVE

                CRITICISM.  Like most people that word makes me cringe.  I have often felt that when someone criticized me I was being attacked.  I didn’t want to hear other people point out my faults.  I didn’t want to acknowledge my own faults, let alone have someone else do it.

                Criticism is a difficult concept to grasp, it can be constructive, negative, or unnecessary.  The problem with criticism these days is that so many people do so in order to put other people down.  Many people put others down as a way to make themselves feel better or control other people through their feelings.

                When you are being criticized by another person it is possible to look past your fear of “being called out” and grow.  When you are being criticized by someone who is only trying to make themselves feel better, how do you distinguish that?

                The first step to dealing with criticism is to realize that you are in control of what you will do with the things being said to you.  No One can make you feel bad about yourself unless you allow it.

                When someone is being negative and critical simply because they want to feel better about themselves, use LOVE as a tool.  First you must fill your heart with LOVE for yourself.  Love is the best defense against negativity.

                The more difficult step when being criticized is to practice Love for the person who is being critical towards you.  Whether they are being critical because they are negative, or are being critical because they Love you and want to see you grow and succeed doesn’t matter.

                The person using criticism as a weapon is in need of LOVE, they are trying to fill a place of lack within themselves by putting others down.  It is often said that what you put out in the world, you will get back.  When you are able to put LOVE out into the world, in the face of negativity and criticism you can help to grow that LOVE in others.

                The person who is critical out of LOVE can be more difficult to spot.  The people who are operating from Love aren’t simply criticizing you, they are truly concerned about you.  The people operating out of Love desire to change themselves and others through personal growth and LOVE.

One sure way to distinguish a critical person who operates from Love, is how they treat themselves.  A person who operates from LOVE will not only point to areas where growth is lacking in others, but will be able to acknowledge areas in their own lives that are in need of growth.  The person operating from LOVE won’t feel better when you feel worse.

Don’t let others negativity control you.  Practice how to accept criticism as a tool for growth.  Practice distancing yourself from people who use criticism as a tool to make themselves feel better.  A little bit of criticism can be healthy if you are operating from LOVE and aren’t using it as a weapon against yourself or others. 

To The Universe

Love Brandy