I cut my husband Bill’s hair on the back porch last week so he wouldn’t need to see his barber while we are waiting out our turns to be vaccinated. Let’s just say that once it feels safe, he WILL return to the barber.

I heard myself say to Bill, “I preferred it when you had someone else do this for you and I just criticized your haircut when you came home.”

How many of us do the equivalent in our paid work?

It is often easier to criticize work we pay for than to acknowledge that we cannot competently do it ourselves.

Next time you catch yourself on the verge of a criticism, think about whether or not there is actually something constructive being added by your comment.