Criticism feels personal because it lands on identity. Growth accelerates when you separate the signal from the ego and build a loop that turns every note—good, bad, or clumsy—into better decisions tomorrow. Systems compound; so can feedback.
What a Feedback Loop Actually Is
It’s a simple, useful loop: Observe → Interpret → Adjust → Evidence
You collect a signal, decide what it means, change one thing, and leave proof you did. Then repeat—faster next time.
Two principles make it work:
- Lead, not lag. Favour inputs you control (reps, minutes, publishes) over outcomes you don’t (virality, revenue).
- Speed over theatre. Short loops beat perfect post-mortems. You learn while the evidence is warm.
Criticism, Decoded
Not all feedback is equal. Label it before you act on it.
| Signal Type | Meaning | Next Action |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome | Result after the fact | Trace back to inputs |
| Process | How you worked | Change a step |
| Identity | Who you “are” | Ignore; reframe as process |
If it’s identity-level (“you’re not a closer,” “you’re not a real writer”), downgrade it to a process insight you can test.
Design Your Loop (Writers, Sales, Coders)
- Writers: Ask for notes on clarity, structure, and hook, not taste. Install a 24-hour cooling period before edits. Keep a decision journal for what you changed, why, and how it performed. Refresh proven winners before writing net-new—feedback compounds more on existing assets.
- Sales: Instrument the pipeline. After each call, log what advanced (clear next step?) and what stalled (missing trigger, wrong persona?). Run a Friday review: tweak opener, one ask per email, sharpen ICP. Track time-to-next-step as your health metric.
- Coders: Make the repo your mirror. Keep PRs small (≤150 lines). Ask reviewers for naming, tests, and complexity—not “vibes.” When a bug escapes, add one guardrail (test, lint rule, checklist). Each failure should leave behind a rule.
Ask Better Questions, Get Better Signal
Replace “Thoughts?” with prompts that produce actionable notes:
- “What’s one part you’d cut?”
- “Where did you stall?”
- “What one change would 2× clarity?”
- “If this failed in the wild, where would it fail first?”
You’re curating reality, not hunting compliments.
The Weekly Feedback Ritual (30 Minutes)
- Collect: Comments, metrics, rejections, support tickets.
- Tag: Outcome / Process / Identity. Discard identity.
- Pick One Change: What smallest tweak removes the biggest friction?
- Schedule: Put the change on next week’s calendar.
- Evidence: Write one line in your decision journal. Ship.
Small, continuous fixes—not quarterly heroics—create the compounding curve.
Red-Team Yourself (Safely)
Once a month, invite a trusted peer (or an AI red team) to break your idea kindly:
- Writers: “Argue against this thesis in 5 bullets.”
- Sales: “Why would this buyer say no—today?”
- Coders: “What edge case will crash this in prod?”
Make it a game with rules and a timebox. The aim is optionality—spot more paths and pitfalls before the world does.
Evidence Over Ego
Feedback stings less when you can point to artefacts: Published drafts, PR links, call notes, tests added, bounce rates lowered.
Evidence is how you pay yourself for staying open to critique. It also shortens debates—especially with yourself.
Your Next Loop Starts Now
Take the last piece of criticism you received. Label it. Choose one small change. Put it on the calendar. Leave evidence. Then go again—with less noise and more signal each pass.
Leave a Reply