--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People who ask for your criticism want…" description: "\"People who ask for your criticism want only praise.\" — W. Somerset Maugham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/392/w-somerset-maugham-237_asks_people-who-ask-for-your-criticism-want-o_1577985.jpg" --- # People who ask for your criticism want only praise. ![“People who ask for your criticism want only praise.” quote by W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/392/w-somerset-maugham-237_asks_people-who-ask-for-your-criticism-want-o_1577985.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/392/w-somerset-maugham-237_asks_people-who-ask-for-your-criticism-want-o_1577985.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/392/w-somerset-maugham-237_asks_people-who-ask-for-your-criticism-want-o_1577985.jpg) > “People who ask for your criticism want only praise.” [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critics seeking praise may only want positive feedback, not constructive criticism. **In simple terms:** People asking for criticism often want praise instead. Key Takeaway Seek honest feedback, not just approval. Themes criticism feedback praise ego communication Mood reflective analytical Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - performance reviews - creative writing - personal growth Key Concepts psychology social dynamics validation Questions to Reflect On - How can you encourage genuine critique? - What motivates people to request only praise? A Different Perspective Relying on praise can hinder improvement and self‑awareness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ask Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ask-criticism-1520681/) [Asks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asks/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Criticism Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism-want-569368/) [Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praise/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-praise-401509/) ## Related quotes > [People ask for criticism, but they only want praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/people-ask-for-criticism-but-they-only-want-praise/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [People ask you for criticism, but they only want praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-ask-you-for-criticism-but-they-only-want-praise/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I suspect that most authors don't really want criticism, not even constructive criticism. They want straight-out, unabashed, unashamed, fulsome, informed, naked praise, arriving by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-suspect-that-most-authors-don-t-really-want-criticism-not-even/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I don't want you to praise me...Some praise me because I am a colored girl, and I don't want that kind of praise. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmonia-lewis/i-don-t-want-you-to-praise-me-some-praise-me-because-i-am-a-colored/) [Edmonia Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmonia-lewis/) > [Actors are greedy. They can never be satisfied. I want praise as well as box office returns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/actors-are-greedy-they-can-never-be-satisfied-i-want-praise-as-well/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The way you ask for criticism and react when you get it goes a long way toward building trust—or destroying it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-malone-scott/the-way-you-ask-for-criticism-and-react-when-you-get-it-goes-a-long/) [Kim Malone Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-malone-scott/) > [Successful people ask for the criticism of others and consider its merit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/successful-people-ask-for-the-criticism-of-others-and-consider-its/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [There's always loose points that people bring up, which is great, and I think that's why you read criticism is because you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-russo/there-s-always-loose-points-that-people-bring-up-which-is-great-and-i/) [Joe Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-russo/) > [Social media criticism: you only see it how much you want see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mctominay/social-media-criticism-you-only-see-it-how-much-you-want-see-it/) [Scott McTominay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mctominay/) > [You gotta be able to take criticism if you want to be anything close to great. Even if it's not true. You use that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demar-derozan/you-gotta-be-able-to-take-criticism-if-you-want-to-be-anything-close/) [DeMar DeRozan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demar-derozan/) > [There are some movies that deserve criticism. They want people to know that it's a great dramatic accomplishment and has some great performances in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-l-jackson/there-are-some-movies-that-deserve-criticism-they-want-people-to-know/) [Samuel L. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-l-jackson/) > [Book critics or theatre critics can be derisively negative and gain delighted praise for the trenchant with of their review. But in criticisms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/book-critics-or-theatre-critics-can-be-derisively-negative-and-gain/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Having the critics praise you is like having the hangman say you've got a pretty neck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-wallach/having-the-critics-praise-you-is-like-having-the-hangman-say-you-ve/) [Eli Wallach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-wallach/) > [“If you’re sure something is what you want, then praise God like you’ve already got it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicki-hinze/if-you-re-sure-something-is-what-you-want-then-praise-god-like-you-ve/) [Vicki Hinze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vicki-hinze/) > [“I don’t want to praise myself. Rather, I want to praise the thing that saves me from myself. Hence there is God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/i-don-t-want-to-praise-myself-rather-i-want-to-praise-the-thing-that/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) ## More by W. Somerset Maugham > [“A man thinks it quite natural that he should fall out of love with a woman, but it never strikes him for a moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-man-thinks-it-quite-natural-that-he-should-fall-out-of-love-with-a/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“A man's work reveals him. In social intercourse he gives you the surface that he wishes the world to accept, but in his book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-man-s-work-reveals-him-in-social-intercourse-he-gives-you-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Love is only a dirty trick played on us to achieve continuation of the species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/love-is-only-a-dirty-trick-played-on-us-to-achieve-continuation-of/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [The world is hard and cruel. We are here none knows why, and we go none knows whither. We must be very humble. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/the-world-is-hard-and-cruel-we-are-here-none-knows-why-and-we-go-none/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“There is no more merit in having read a thousand books than in having ploughed a thousand fields.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/there-is-no-more-merit-in-having-read-a-thousand-books-than-in-having/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“I wanted to live again and again. I was willing to accept every sort of life, no matter what its pain and sorrow; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/i-wanted-to-live-again-and-again-i-was-willing-to-accept-every-sort/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [In Hollywood, the women are all peaches. It makes one long for an apple occasionally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/in-hollywood-the-women-are-all-peaches-it-makes-one-long-for-an-apple/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Follow your inclinations with due regard to the policeman round the corner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/follow-your-inclinations-with-due-regard-to-the-policeman-round-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“His love became a prison from which he longed to escape, but he had not the strength merely to open the door-that was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/his-love-became-a-prison-from-which-he-longed-to-escape-but-he-had/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [I did not believe him capable of love. That is an emotion in which tenderness is an essential part, but Strickland had no tenderness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/i-did-not-believe-him-capable-of-love-that-is-an-emotion-in-which/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [If only the good were a little less heavy-footed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/if-only-the-good-were-a-little-less-heavy-footed/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/perfection-has-one-grave-defect-it-is-apt-to-be-dull/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“A God that can be understood is no God. Who can explain the Infinite in words?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-god-that-can-be-understood-is-no-god-who-can-explain-the-infinite/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“My dear, you used to be quite a dish; now you're quite a tureen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/my-dear-you-used-to-be-quite-a-dish-now-you-re-quite-a-tureen/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“When people say they do not care what others thing of them, for the most part they deceive themselves”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/when-people-say-they-do-not-care-what-others-thing-of-them-for-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) [Explore all 840 W. Somerset Maugham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) ## More Asks quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [I don't wear a watch because I want my arms to weigh the same. So if somebody asks me what time it is, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-don-t-wear-a-watch-because-i-want-my-arms-to-weigh-the-same-so-if/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [I am a practicing Catholic, but my lineage is Jewish, so if someone asks me if I'm Jewish, I say yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neve-campbell/i-am-a-practicing-catholic-but-my-lineage-is-jewish-so-if-someone/) [Neve Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neve-campbell/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [Why did Erich von Stronheim leave Germany? Why did Hitchcock leave England? If you were a director you'd like to work in Hollywood too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-polanski/why-did-erich-von-stronheim-leave-germany-why-did-hitchcock-leave/) [Roman Polanski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-polanski/) > [There is nothing more I ask of this life than this moment, exactly so. And suddenly forever seems like too short a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-andreas/there-is-nothing-more-i-ask-of-this-life-than-this-moment-exactly-so/) [Brian Andreas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-andreas/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [The most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-most-fundamental-question-we-can-ever-ask-ourselves-is-whether-or/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [I have no hesitation in saying that although the American woman never leaves her domestic sphere and is in some respects very dependent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-have-no-hesitation-in-saying-that-although-the-american-woman-never/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I don't know how to say it exactly. Only...I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?' he asks. I shake my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-don-t-know-how-to-say-it-exactly-only-i-want-to-die-as-myself-does/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Physicist Isador Isaac Rabi, who won a Nobel Prize for inventing a technique that permitted scientists to probe the structure of atoms and molecules…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-saul-wurman/physicist-isador-isaac-rabi-who-won-a-nobel-prize-for-inventing-a/) [Richard Saul Wurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-saul-wurman/) [Browse all 7,138 Asks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asks/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People who ask for your criticism want only praise.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. 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