Feedback Thoughts

Having been a student for quite a while now, I can realize the importance of good and constructive feedback on work, and especially creative work. Without an outside opinion, there is no way to know how others will receive your work, and there is no way to grow. If you present the work to someone, it can be assumed that it is nearly done, if not already finished. With another set of eyes on the work, the weak spots and pieces that need more work can be easily identified. In my school career, I have always been open to feedback on my work. Perhaps it is because I'm an English major, which implies revision, but I've never had any issues with professors or instructors critiquing my work. However, when it is a creative piece, I get much more defensive, and it is harder to take in the feedback. Although I understand that it is meant to be constructive, creative work takes a much more personal tone, and it is hard not to feel attacked. I found these articles helpful because they serve as good reminders of what I already know: that it really isn't personal. 

Crumpled attempts at writing
Source: Pixabay

I found the article How to Get Past Negativity Bias in Order to Hardwire Positive Experiences very interesting. Specifically, the idea that each positive memory or experience should be mentally tied to a negative experience was strange but compelling. To me, it seems that this may be better thought of in theory, rather than in practice. While the idea is to normalize negative situations, in a way, it seems sad to me to have to tie something negative to something positive. Because personally, I am very guilty of dwelling on the negative, the thought of slightly dimming something truly positive is concerning. I imagine that this process would take some real practice to work. The risk of ruining something that has already been stored away as positive seems too high a risk, for me, at least. 

I was also drawn to the article Seven Ways to Crush Self-Doubt, because I am often hard on myself, especially creatively, and a list of ways to combat that is always welcome. Number three jumped out at me the most because I am not great at being vulnerable with people, especially when it is regarding something creative. First, I have a hard time sharing my work with anyone in the first place, and second, I get defensive when there is any criticism, even if it is constructive. I liked the idea of having a trusted few to serve as my sounding board, where I can feel as though my work is being evaluated fairly, but not scrutinized. This is especially relevant to me because I typically have creative circles of people around me, so I can also step back and realize that they are in my shoes as well.