Feedback...How Important It Is and Mistakes We Make in Evaluaing It

Reading this post, The Feedback Loop by Solo, reminded me of how important feedback really is.  It also reminded me of how difficult it can be to tell the difference between good feedback and bad feedback.  

First, good feedback is not necessarily positive feedback....and vice-versa.  In fact, negative feedback...just like failure in general...can teach us more about what we need to improve than positive feedback.

The greatest challenge is identifying what is actually beneficial feedback as opposed to someone just spewing negativity.  As a general rule, if there is something specific in the feedback, it's worth thinking about.  And here's where most people will typically have difficulty, we have to be honest in evaluating that negative feedback.  If we are, it can help step up our game with a new perspective.  That's not to say that we need to address every issue brought up.  Sometimes we do things for specific reasons that the commenter is unaware of...and sometimes it's just a matter of taste.

In this sense, there are two basic mistakes to avoid:

Trying to please everyone -  We all know, intellectually, that we can't please everyone.  However, there's a human need that inclines us to try.  After all, no one likes rejection!  Unfortunately, it can't be done.  No matter how hard you try, someone will always hate something abut what you do.  Stick to your purpose and to your style.  In the end it will gather you a stronger following and continued growth.

Playing to your base - Or as I like to think of it, 'The Gallagher Effect'.  For those who've never heard of him, Gallagher was a comedian with a very particular...and peculiar...style.  Over time though, his work started to pander to his core fans and each show became more and more identical to the last one.  In the end, there was nothing new to see....growth had stopped.  The danger here is by guiding yourself only by the positive feedback you risk becoming stagnant in your work and your ideas.  'Playing' the same thing to the same audience.

 

So in the end, feedback really is our friend.  The most important thing we need to learn about feedback is how to tell the real stuff from the fluff...and how to be honest enough with ourselves to make maximum use of it.