We’re not always expecting it, but receiving criticism — or praise — is a skill that can be improved with practice. Often the prospect of conversation involving feedback can be daunting. Providing and receiving effective feedback is something you have to learn and work on as you build your career. Here are some tips for using feedback successfully.

We’ve all heard it: workplace feedback, constructive or otherwise. Sometimes we’re expecting it, and sometimes we’re not. Whatever the circumstances, receiving criticism — or praise, for that matter — is a significant skill that can almost always be improved by applying some thought and practice. With companies and organizations spending millions every year on employee engagement programs — and workplace engagement levels at a record high in the United States — feedback conversations are in your work life to stay.