Observations/Surprises:
-- 4 out of 20 think they err in being too receptive to feedback, 12 out of 20 think they err in not being receptive enough, and the remaining 4 think they are about right.
-- Only 2 out of 20 said they crave feedback and go out of their way to find, and only two more said craving it and going out of your way to find it is ideal.
-- I won’t make any conclusions from this sample size, but there was a pretty high correlation between age and both ideal and actual approaches, meaning that older people in this sample tended to be less receptive to feedback.
-- Here are some comments I found especially interesting/insightful (in no particular order):
“I don't think feedback is very effective at providing advice, only in informing me of the gap between what I think of myself and what others think of me. Yet admittedly, I can't tell if I want to close that gap (be known for who I am) or widen it (be a mystery).”
“To me, [people who deserve to be listened to]=[people whose opinions carry informational content]=[people who could actually improve the quality of my beliefs if I listen to them]. In this sense, tautologically I should aspire to listen only to those people who deserve to be listened to...or more precisely, I should aspire to put the proper weight on everyone's opinion, from zero to a whole lot (and everything in between).
In practice though, I am hardly perfect at this. Some people I don't take seriously enough, even when I know I should. And other people really get to me even when they probably shouldn't. A squib comes to mind: it's important to know your audience so you know who to ignore...guess that one really stuck with me.”
“A common piece of advice for startups is: pay attention to feedback from customers because it will hone your product development? Is the same approach necessary for individuals and their "product?" ...which creates a side thought: is there something wrong with whoring yourself out to feedback? In other words, is the company, whose mission becomes altered by consumer wants, any less of a company than it would be if it just stayed on the original path? Same question for the individual.”
“I am a member of the Dogbert New Ruling Council. My title is "Minister of Intelligence Discrimination." I am duty-bound to filter-out (including not listening to) feedback that comes from disreputable sources (i.e., non-DNRC members).
Seriously, my approach is a little short of ideal, but I don't have time or energy (or patience) to take feedback from just anyone who offers it. I screen more because I have to.”
“I think I'm open to constructive criticism. More open to it that closed to it, but then I'm sure it's easy to think that about yourself. The exception is my parents. I find it hard to receive criticism from them, depending on the circumstances. Positive feedback from them is rare, so when it comes it means a lot.”
“I have never heard any evidence that feedback ever has negative effects, and it often has quite positive ones. However, when I think someone doesn't know as much about a topic as I do, I occasionally bristle (coming from a place of egocentrism) at potentially constructive criticism. Relative to being open to all feedback, and in fact seeking feedback from all, I see no benefits to this approach. For the meantime, my ego stands in the way of a more optimal mindset re: feedback.”
