I take things personally all the time. Because some things are absolutely personal, and I’m allowed to acknowledge that.
However, I also understand that most things are less personal than we think. Often, it’s just me reacting from my own stress and insecurities.
From my experience, employees often take feedback personally when it’s actually about performance.
And managers sometimes take disagreement personally when it’s simply a difference of opinion.
Not everybody is able to separate identity from behaviour, and that often gets in the way of better conversations.
Here’s the simple rule of thumb I follow:
• Take responsibility personally.
• Don’t take rejection personally.
• Take feedback seriously.
• Don’t take every opinion seriously.
Life becomes much lighter when we stop treating every comment as a verdict on who we are.
That said, don’t become so detached that we stop caring.
Happy weekend, everybody!
Remember the goal is not to become emotionally numb.
The goal is to become emotionally accurate – to know when to take things personally, and when to simply let go, if that makes sense.
xoxoxo, AuntyHR
