I am rather fond of constructive criticism. While it does at times come with a negative feeling as well, I do value receiving it. When you put everything into a project and people come along pointing out errors, it can be a bit disheartening. Still, I am glad to know what I did wrong/ what I can improve.
You might say criticism is like vitamins. Pop them in your mouth and igh! Your tongue starts wondering why it's being punished. Then the stuff starts working and your body's performance improves, and you are glad you consumed them. While constructive criticism can be awkward at first, it's the results that matter. If I- no, when I- make errors and do not see them, I would much rather being told as soon as possible than have errored work up for a long time.
When people give it, I appreciate that they are taking their time to point things out to me. If my work was nothing them, I doubt they would try to improve it. I read a comic strip a few years ago. A girl painted a horrendous picture and posted it publicly to sell. Her parents knew the picture was bad, so they separately disguised themselves as customers and tried to buy the painting so others wouldn't come along and make fun. Each didn't know the other was, so they ended up fighting over the picture til their disguises came off and the girl found out. Well, the parents wouldn't tell their daughter the picture was bad, so their daughter was led to believe they just really wanted the painting, so she never improved, but felt very happy. You can avoid being hurt in such a way by turning feedback off, but then you are likely to miss out on ways to improve, should there be any.
Constructive criticism is good to get because people are usually biased about their own work. When you put your heart into something, you can be blinded to its flaws. When I was thirteen, I wrote a several chapters of a story, and thought it was amazing. I even thought about getting it published some day. My father read it to the family, as I wanted to see what they thought and hear what it sounded like. While I enjoyed it, every member of my family said it was extremely boring. Though it did not feel good to hear that, I took their words and began anew, and have gotten numerous compliments on round two. If my family had told me they liked it, I would have continued all these years writing a boring story, wasting my time. Criticism is good, sometimes even better from non friends and family because you can get an unbiased opinion.
Some people on youtube are a bit overpicky, I must say. You will found those with the "You missed a spot" attititude everywhere. It is also embarrasing for many when such remarks apear publicly so all can see where one could have improved. That is the risk you are accetping though when allowing feedback. You can get good and bad. I think Ruby coined it nicely in "Escape from the Mysterious Beyond:"
You have to take the good with the bad, or you can't take anything.
When you allow feedback, just take that to heart and ignore bashing. Be glad for the parts that are good. When you buy a bag of fruit, be happy about the fresh ones inside, and try not to be sad about the ones that are rotten because you're likely to find them most everywhere.
