When you speak to someone, you speak with an intention. You say what you say, the way you say it, for reasons you decide.

If I didn’t think you’d receive any more critical feedback, I wouldn’t spend an entire week talking about it. But you’re not done yet. You will receive more criticism.

Ok, quick review:

When you receive criticism, you need a reliable method to move yourself from how you initially feel to clear thinking and good judgment. That’s how you discover what is true and useful and valuable, and what is not.

The hardest part of processing and responding to criticism? Your reactive emotions get first access, not your clearest thinking. You feel criticism before you think about it.

Someone just criticized you. They gave you direct feedback that something about your behavior creates undesired consequences. How does that feel? What do you do with the criticism?

Discipline is establishing a clear standard (or system of standards) and keeping your decisions and actions aligned with that standard.

What lessons can we take from this fresh understanding of denotation vs connotation?

One word that illustrates just how big the gap can get between denotation (literal meaning) and connotation (feelings and associations) is the word accountability.