Owning your Emotions during Critiques

Critiques inevitably involve emotional reactions for any participant invested in the experience in the least. Often, the effectiveness of the feedback is significantly impacted by the receptiveness of the participants. There is an inherent loss of control when someone’s creative work is shared within a critique setting. The feelings associated with this loss of control often significantly affect the context of comments made and possibly reduce or interfere with the effectiveness of those insights. Responses by the creator of the work being critiqued often indicate their emotional state. By fostering basic awareness and reflection on emotions occurring through the process, critique participants, including the facilitator, can better guide their contributions to be as constructive and useful as possible.