Thursday, January 30, 2025

Growing Wisdom

To receive feedback well takes courage, and to do something productive with it takes work

By Ryan Timmermans, Regional Director, Edmonton Member Centre

Wisdom can be described as the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgement. Put another way, our ability to make good judgments is based on what we have learned.

So, how do we learn and gain experience? One quick way is soliciting honest feedback from those we know well, listening to what they say, and then trying to implement change in areas that require improvement.

At first, this sounds pretty easy, but in reality, it’s intimidating. Think about the last honest conversation you’ve had with someone you love or the most recent performance evaluation at work where you received “constructive” feedback.

Remember, it’s only constructive if you hear what’s being said and try to do something useful with it! It’s hard for us to hear things we probably know but may not like.

To receive feedback well takes courage, and to do something productive with it takes work. Sometimes, we get the same feedback repeatedly and do nothing with it, thus ending up in the same spot at a later date, which falls into the definition of both foolishness and insanity.

The big question becomes, are you willing to listen and make intentional changes in your life based upon honest feedback and thus grow your wisdom? It’s worth taking a moment to consider your truthful answer to this question as it has significant impact on your work life and personal relationships.

To seek wisdom is uncomfortable, humbling, and quite hard. But at the same time, it is incredibly worthwhile as it transforms us into better people, both in our professional lives and with our families.

So, if you are asked to provide feedback, be respectful but honest. And if you’re receiving feedback, try to take it well and do something productive with it. Don’t let the opportunity to grow your wisdom pass you by.

Growing Wisdom

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