I think you found the key that will unlock many more doors..
Thanks to long hours and talks from my wife, I'm living your message now. I really understand where your coming from. I live by this: I really needed to think about and incorporate the feedback I get from people.
Fortunately when they start listening to you (statist or not) they are fantastic at giving feedback. People like you and I need to always make it a point to really listen and change. There is a lot of power behind the wheel so it is very important to steer the machine in the right direction.
The feedback defines us..