Why Harsh Self-Criticism Can Hold You Back from Improving

Why Harsh Self-Criticism Can Hold You Back from Improving

Being overly hard on yourself doesn’t necessarily lead to better results. Discover exercises that help you find useful lessons and decide what to do next.

You might think that the more harshly you judge your performance, the more you’ll learn from it. But when you focus only on what went wrong, you can miss the lessons that matter. Try separating your assessment of the outcome from questions about what influenced it and what you can do differently next time. This blog offers practical questions, games, and techniques to help you reflect on your decisions without jumping to broad conclusions.

Interested in this topic? Read more: Using Self-Criticism and Reflection to Enhance Learning and Decision-Making Want to find out where you stand personally? Take a short test at the end of the page and gain a better understanding.

How does this apply to you? Choose the answers that describe you best:

What is the most common way you approach decision-making in everyday situations?

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How do you react when you are not sure if your decision was correct?

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When the decision doesn't pay off, what troubles you the most about it?

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What feelings do you have when someone else points out a mistake in your decision-making?

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How do you usually evaluate your decisions after they have been made?

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When do you think it is hardest to be self-critical when making decisions?

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How would you react if you realized that you had ignored an important factor in your decision-making?

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How do you feel about assessing your own abilities in decision-making?

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How do you cope with feelings of guilt or doubt after making a decision?

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When you realize that your decision negatively affected someone else, how do you feel?

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Self-criticism in decision-making and developing the ability to be self-critical

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