Design is subjective. There are no right and wrong solutions, which is why candid and critical feedback is important to:
- Show new perspectives
- Explore other ideas
- See design shortcomings
Essentially, the more feedback you receive, the better designer you can become.
Then Why is Receiving Feedback Difficult?
While you can learn how to give good feedback, receiving it may always be hard for you. Some people can take criticism and move on, others can get hurt or start to question their abilities and skills and give up. We are all different.
But in general, as designers, we learn how to be sensitive and open to other people, so we can design better products for them. The exact skill that makes us good designers also makes us terrible at receiving feedback.Basically, negative feedback constitute the following:
- You are seeking feedback that confirms your talents and intelligence.
- Now your flaws are revealed, and you feel like an imposter.
- You believe that your skills and qualities are insufficient to address the feedback.
How Can You Influence Your Reaction To Negative Feedback
The important thing is to understand how to react to negative feedback about your work. Here are 5 ways you can do so:
- Decide on whether you want to take the feedback.
Think about the source of the feedback, and the intention. Is it from someone less or more experienced than you? Is it from a person from a different culture, and thus a different life experience? Is this person driven by personal goals? Remember, not all feedback is useful for you to improve and grow.
- Expand on the feedback to get specifics
Give yourself a moment to process the feedback and decide if you can learn from it. Second, assume good intentions. Perhaps your critic had difficulty communicating their feedback more effectively. Finally, invite discussion. Get more specific by uncovering the root cause of the critic’s reaction.
- Understand your intent when seeking feedback
Recognition and praise are great motivators, which is why critical feedback from fellow designers highlighting flaws that are mostly constructive and useful can make you feel down, incapable, and unworthy. But understand that getting recognition is not why you ask someone for feedback. Remind yourself that you can learn from criticism. It helps you to grow and learn how to improve your work.
- Accept criticism with an open mind
You put hours of work into your design, thought of every little detail, polished your copy, and a desire to be praised for it is absolutely natural. However, your design may still be imperfect. Let comments about your flaws stay with you for a while, embrace it, and let it go when you are ready.
- Don't let criticism define you
Feedback may be harsh and devastating, and if the gap between your current skills and what you need to learn is too big, you may be inclined to tell yourself that you will never be very good. But many skills and abilities can be improved with perseverance, strategy, and support. So don't let it define you.
Regular, candid, and critical feedback enables us to see shortcomings in our choices, pushes us to explore other ideas, and shows us new perspectives. Essentially, the more feedback you receive, the better designer you can become. Learning how to accept feedback is the right direction for growing as a designer.
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