How Do You Respond To Criticism?

A simple answer could be “I respond well to criticism because I want to learn from my mistakes.”  A better answer should go beyond that typical response and give it a more personal flair. Remember? tell a story.

Sample Answer:


“Well, to me there’s a difference between criticism and constructive criticism. No one responds well to criticism that is mean-spirited or unjustified. If I feel I am the target of such criticism, I try to find out the underlying cause.  Constructive criticism, on the other hand, is something I greatly value. I’m always eager to accept advice from colleagues; I feel it’s one of the best ways to learn and I am grateful to receive it.  In my current job, I designed a data validation engine on .NET platform.  In the first review meeting, I heard a lot of cristicsm.  Of course I didn’t take it personally but rather tried to find out what was behind it.  By talking to them individually, I found that they don’t have much opinion about my design, but doubt about choosing the .NET platform since it was a new technology to them.  Therefore I called second meeting to give them a detailed overview of the .NET platform and explained the advantages of using .NET for this project.  After they understood my technical approaches, my design was well accepted.”