Encouraging Criticism

Hate Twitter all you want, but, like I’ve said HERE, I find great value in it.  I recently said this after a visit to Lasaters Coffee, a local shop here in Clarksville:

Disappointed that the @lasaterscoffee workers couldn’t serve me a press pot of coffee bc they didn’t know what it was 3:37 PM Dec 2nd

I received this reply from them…directly to me:

@benreed We will be serving coffee via French Press before you know it!! Keep an eye on the website and in the stores:) 10:04 AM Dec 4th from TweetDeck in reply to benreed

Knowing how, and when, to respond to critics is very important.  I applaud Lasaters for their timely and effective response.  Because of that response, they’ll get more business from me.

A critique of the system you’re leading can often feel like a personal attack.

But in the end, critiques can help to improve the overall effectiveness of the ministry.

Maybe a person’s critique is off-base.  Out of line.  Out of touch.  Off-color.  Off-putting.  Off-handed.  Offensive.  Biting.  Reactionary.  Untruthful.  Unholy.  Discouraging.  Poorly timed.  Poorly executed.  Or all of the above combined.

But most critiques have at least a shred of truth.

May we, as leaders in our respective organizations, be humble enough to continually evaluate our system.

How do you encourage open, honest evaluation of your system?