Handling Criticism

I've always taken criticism poorly. I'm just touchy when people comment on a personality flaw of mine or if I've made some sort of mistake, no matter how small. I do think I've gotten better about taking criticism: the older you get, the more comfortable you are in your own skin, and you don't take as many comments personally as you may have growing up. But I still get annoyed when people make fun of me for really small, unimportant things. This morning I was playing tennis with a Meet-Up group, and I had to play with these two guys I already knew I didn't enjoy playing with. They either take the game too seriously (I'm just there to have fun), or they're Beta males trying to act like Alphas (fellas, get over yourselves. Life is too short to worry about being cool). But to be a good sport I played with them anyway. And of course, they immediately start annoying me, commenting on my clothes and things like that. When they started shouting out the score on my serve, I told them, "I know what the score is. The server keeps track of the score." One guy retorted, "Well, the server gets the ball in the court, too." Of course I flip him the bird, and I could no longer enjoy the game. Later the guys apologized and said they were just playing around, but for me, once you've crossed me, you're not going to get back on my good side.

Now I'll admit I shouldn't have let them get into my head, but it just shows their own insecurities if they are willing to pick on someone they barely know. I know I should take the high road rather than stooping to their level, and I realize I did the exact opposite and matched their immaturity. It's definitely easier said than done to take criticism in a healthy way, but I am working on it, especially in my athletic side of life. I should beat them with my game, not with my words or bad attitude.