Equally as bad as those who can’t offer constructive criticism are those who can’t accept it. Tongue-in-cheek tips for arrogantly deflecting the views of those who don’t love and adore you and your work:
Alt Text: Genius Strategies for Defanging Web’s Harshest Critics
Among the excellent advice for those who are certain they are geniuses just waiting to be discovered:
“Why bother actually completing something before you let people tell you how great it is? Your genius should be clear from a couple paragraphs, or a handful of rough sketches, or even a vague description of the kick-ass story you’re going to tell.”
and
“It’s possible that you’ll find your work analyzed by someone with genuine talent and years of experience. This is a stroke of luck for you, because you can safely ignore them. After all, they obviously consider you competition and will do anything to discourage you from horning in on their turf. You can also dismiss anyone who isn’t a professional, because if they’re so smart, why are they still stocking shelves at Best Buy? By process of elimination, you can conclude that your best critics are your grandmother and those motivational posters about how dreams are like eagles.”
The overall point of this and my last post: Give good criticism. Take good criticism. Dial down the arrogance on both sides.
