When I was coming up I was blessed to have people who guided me through my errors in life. We called it, “pulling your coattail.”

No I didn’t want to hear what was the errors of my ways, but I listened to the explanation and always reflected on what was being said. This is how grew throughout my life. Many lessons were learned and I am grateful to those who to guide me.

As I embarked on my life as Lady Flava and getting involved with people of the Arts and Entertainment Industry, I grew in my knowledge and understanding of how it identify when something was done well or not and understanding the why.

I had industry mentors and colleagues that helped me with my growth and I was grateful for the guidance.

As I grow, I like to share what I’ve learned, in hopes that others want to grow in what they are publicly presenting.

I share my opinion and critique, I write reviews and want to be respected in sharing my honest thoughts.

Now, this can be very challenging to give an honest review on a Creative’s Project. Not everyone is open to being critique….being critiqued is majorly seen as only being negative feedback….that really is not always the case.

I understand that it is personal when it is coming from their creative inspiration and desires. Many times Creatives only want to hear the Praise vs the Criticism.

praise

verb

1. express warm approval or admiration of.

noun

1. the expression of approval or admiration for someone or something.

Of course we want to be praised for what we do or want to do. But at the same time, if there is room for improvement, I believe we need to be open to hear opinions of those who can guide us in creating a better product.

You should always be open to hear constructive criticism. What we might feel is being done well, others outside of us may see areas we could improve upon. Please try to be open to hear the thoughts of those outside your circle.

We can always improve in some area of what we are creating. Remember this.

Creatives should want to be remembered and talked about, in creating an experience that was done well, that was enjoyable and appreciated. You should want people to want to experience YOU and WHAT YOU DO, time and time again along with you can encourage them to share with others to come out to experience you.

So be open to hear constructive criticism.

Of course we can be more receptive when someone expresses their opinion in a kind way vs a harsh way. I believe so much is in how WE choose to receive the information. For me, I am learning that it is up to me on how I am going to receive what is being said and what value can I take from the information that is being presented about myself or what I do.

Understand this, not everyone that shares criticism about what you are doing is a HATER… It seems these days many identifies when something other that PRAISE is shared, that that person is hating on them. You do not have to receive it that way, stay open minded to feedback.

Look at it like this, is there any valuable feedback in what is being said, and if Not…don’t react and keep it moving. Own your reactions, and accept that some people just want to push your buttons to get a reaction out of you.

But the one thing that the HATER is doing, is PAYING ATTENTION to you.

In life we should always want to improve and grow.

In the Arts and Entertainment Industry we should always aim to create a Quality product that brings a Positive Impact to become a Memorable Experience for ones following, fans, consumers, returning customers.

So, I want to encourage you to seek feedback from those outside your circle. You want to hear from those that have no personal interest in what you are doing, but can be influential in how others could be encouraged to come experience what you have to offer. They can give you valuable feedback on how you can tweak and or improve upon what you are presenting.

People love to experience something that brings them an experience of enjoyment. People love to get excited about something, and when it speaks to their spirit….they will automatically tell others.

Connect with Reviewers, Bloggers, Podcast Hosts, Photographers…those the can share their experience of you with their platform form.

Encourage your following to share privately and on social media what they liked.

And develop a thick skin, so you can receive criticism as a positive and not a negative thing.

In the Arts and Entertainment Industry, I believe people come out for a variety of reasons;

– to be seen

-to be social

-to be wowed

The ones who want to be wowed, are the one’s that are really paying attention. That should be who you want to target.

The others are not really paying attention to YOU, it is more about themselves, but they are still valuable to filling a venue and sharing on social media that they were there.

You do want a full venue for marketing purposes.

Find encouragement from solid feedback back, and throw the rest away. I want to encourage you to be your BEST in this very challenging industry.

You want to be remembered and talked about, you want to stand out.

LadyFlava of LadyFlavaNews

Sharing My Thoughts on

Criticism For Creative SoulZ