Few people want to be a writer and everyone wants to be an editor. I heard someone quote this last weekend and I knew I had to share it. It’s so much easier to have a red pen correcting things than to be the person who wrote it receiving all the feedback. This is why I’m not that fond of some constructive feedback. Let me clarify. I receive feedback from my editors for my books all the time – which I appreciate. However, it’s the unsolicited feedback from others, which can grind my gears at times.
Y’all remember being in school and there was always one or two people doing the bulk of the work for a group project? The other group members chimed in with feedback or stood at the front of the class for moral support for the group presentation. Yeah, still not cool today.😩
While the settings may have changed unsolicited feedback can be tough to digest – especially if others didn’t contribute and they were able to do so. I wish I could say I have mastered receiving feedback, but I haven’t.
However, the two most valuable things heard from a mentor recently were:
- Always assume positive intent from others.
- Don’t allow others to rush you to respond if you need a moment to process what they are saying.
How do you deal with constructive feedback?