Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Contagious Victories is a community for individuals to share positive perspectives, artistic endeavors and miraculous moments with others. Whether it is through storytelling, art, music or word, the members of Contagious Victories create space for vulnerability and act as an audience for support in creative works. We all have something to courageously celebrate- and even small victories are contagious!
Welcome to the Contagious Victories podcast. Each week, we talk inspiration, explore possibilities, and share insights from creative perspectives. I'm here to remind you that your purpose in life is to celebrate the victories because victories are contagious. Hey, friends, and welcome back to another episode of Contagious Victories, the show where we celebrate wins both big and small and all of the moments that shape who we are becoming. Now, this episode is a little more personal and a little bit more uncomfortable, but those are usually the ones that matter the most.
Victoria Glass:I had a real life learning experience recently. Okay. Let me set the scene for you. So I had a client email me this super kind, very professional email and it was filled with a lot of feedback. It kinda caught me off guard, to be honest.
Victoria Glass:Like, you know those moments where you read something and then you reread it, and then you're just like, wait, what? We worked so hard on this. And then it led to, well, what if they're right? Because on one hand, we care deeply about the work that we produce at Cacti Palm Productions. On on the other hand, hearing something like that, you know, where maybe you missed the mark, it can feel personal even when it's not.
Victoria Glass:But then I had this moment. It was like a shift happened, and the only way I can describe it is it must have been the Holy Spirit just nudging me, saying, don't miss this, Tori. So instead of sitting in that initial reaction, I ask myself, what if this feedback is actually a gift? Not like a cute, wrapped, I've been wanting this kind of gift, but a useful one, a necessary kind. Because here's the truth that nobody wants to share, feedback is clarity.
Victoria Glass:It's direction. It's insight. It's someone taking the time to say, hey, I see something that could be better. And that only happens when someone trusts you enough to say it, cares enough to speak up and say it to you, and they want the outcome to improve. And that is not criticism.
Victoria Glass:That's an investment. Feedback will expose the gap between what you thought you delivered as a business and what someone actually experienced. And that gap is everything. That's where the growth lives. Not in the compliments, not in the, oh, this looks amazing, yay, moments, but growth lives in the, hey, this part could be better.
Victoria Glass:And as believers, we're called to grow. So I'm gonna take this from a personal experience to now a little more spiritual. We're called to grow as believers. We're not called to stay the same and be comfortable all the time. There's this refining process that happens in our lives and in our work and especially in our character.
Victoria Glass:And sometimes feedback is one of the tools that God uses to shape us, not to tear us down, but to build us up into something stronger, wiser, and more aligned with His purpose. So when your mindset takes a shift from this is an attack to this is an opportunity, everything changes. And let's be honest, sometimes it's not even what they said, it's that they said it at all. Because now when you're faced with that feedback, you have two options. You can either protect your ego or you can grow to your capacity.
Victoria Glass:And unfortunately, those two can't coexist. So here's what I'm learning through this experience, and maybe it can help you too. Number one, pause your reaction. You do not have to respond immediately. Let it settle.
Victoria Glass:Number two, separate emotion from information. Even when it's delivered imperfectly, there's still something that you can grow from. Number three, look for alignment. If your goal is to serve people and do that well, then yes. Feedback is absolutely a roadmap.
Victoria Glass:And number four, growth doesn't happen in defensiveness. It happens in openness. So take those walls down, don't take anything too personal, use the opportunity for growth as a roadmap to clarity. It's literally leading you to better communication between the two parties or in this case, my business and the client. If I start thinking about, you know, what God does and how He works in our lives, the way that He refines us, the way that He corrects us and shapes us, then, you know, one thing's pointed out.
Victoria Glass:God rarely does anything in our lives that isn't for a purpose, and that purpose doesn't always look like, you know, what we think of as success. Sometimes it can look like, hey, I see what needs to be changed and I'm gonna have the courage to step up and change that. Feedback is one of the ways that, you know, God sharpens us. He never does it to shame us or he doesn't use people to give us feedback to shame us. He uses us in a way that serves His purpose and He uses other people in our lives and sometimes feedback as a tool to sharpen us.
Victoria Glass:So instead of spiraling, what I did is I got curious. I asked myself, hey, is there truth in this? What can I do to adjust? How can I serve better next time? And all three of these questions kind of led up to, you know, this one big moment of at the end of the day, my goal is to serve people well, and feedback is literally the roadmap to do that.
Victoria Glass:So here's the Contagious Victory in all of this. I didn't just receive feedback, I received direction. I received clarity, an opportunity to improve and to get better and to serve better. Clarity is how to grow, how to grow both, you know, as a person and as a business, and honestly, that is one of the greatest gifts anyone could give you. So if you've gotten feedback lately, especially the kind that kind of stings a little bit and your first reaction is to be defensive, first of all, same, but maybe, just maybe, that feedback is exactly what is going to take you to the next level, even if it comes dressed as an email that maybe you didn't love.
Victoria Glass:So I just want to encourage you, lean in. There might be growth waiting for you on the other side of all of this, and that growth, it doesn't just impact you. It will overflow into everything and everyone around you. And that is how victories become contagious. Thank you so much for tuning in for this little mini episode, and I hope that you were encouraged by a little personal story that I shared today.
Victoria Glass:Make sure to follow us on Instagram and wherever you are listening so that you are notified whenever we have new episodes. And thanks again for tuning in, guys. I really, really appreciate it. Until next time, I'm Tori Glass, and this is Contagious Victories.