How Do I Toughen Up At Work? Part 1

I'm working on Part 2 of this article and should have it up soon.Comments appreciated.

This is excellent and very much needed. Thank you.

Count me as one who grew up with a mercilessly critical parent who destroyed any budding self-esteem I might have ever hoped to have in my youth. I've never been much for tears, but I did have a terrible time learning how to accept even constructive criticism without turning into mush or becoming defensive. What a blessing it was when, after having suffered from self-loathing for most of my life, I finally discovered that somebody's saying a thing is so, doesn't make it so. That little bit of wisdom has saved me more heartbreak than I can shake a stick at; indeed, it's probably saved my career, as nursing is definitely "not for sissies". It's far easier to allow things to roll off your back when you believe you are made of Teflon, as opposed to being flypaper for bullies.

^_^ Thank you so much. I may just be a pre-nursing student still, but any advice to strengthen my skin and any tools given for me to start my career are much appreciated.

I needed this! Thank you

"If you grew up in an overly critical or unstable atmosphere, you probably hear a negative inner message that mocks and attacks everything you say or do. When a real person comes along and gives voice to those thoughts, they tap into a reservoir of “old business” and knock you off your pins. "It stunned me to read this, and to realize that I had never analyzed that about myself. It was a true "DUH!" moment to see someone else have more insight into my issues than I do. Thank you for giving me a tool to help strengthen myself.

Thank you all for your comments. So many really good nurses battle inner voices from the past that told them they weren't good enough. If you don't identify this false accuser and get rid of the old tapes, you'll enter the job world expecting to hear the same old tunes. Until you know you have a choice, you don't really have one.Here is Part 2:http://allnurses.com/nursing-blogs/how-do-i-648429.html

Thank you

I swear, this article was just what I needed! Have you been inside my head lately???

Yeah, I used to be a basket case at work too. I was so stressed out about trying to catch on to dialysis that I just couldn't handle the extra criticism. There was one coworker in particular that just liked to nit pick every little thing that I did wrong.... It took me a long time to build confidence in myself and this caused her to back down a lot. It is very hard to be a new Nurse and you are really tested by your coworkers sometimes.

Rn/writer, I'm really not exaggerating when I say that this is going to be a life changer for me. I wrote down a few thoughts last night and went through them with a rational mind, and I had a moment. I'll have to careful not to start making excuses for myself when I have areas that truly need improving though. THANK YOU.

Awesome post. Thank you.