{"id":20373,"date":"2018-12-01T12:01:10","date_gmt":"2018-12-01T17:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.johnpaulcaponigro.com\/blog\/?p=20373"},"modified":"2021-10-22T16:34:24","modified_gmt":"2021-10-22T16:34:24","slug":"ask-useful-feedback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.johnpaulcaponigro.com\/blog\/20373\/ask-useful-feedback\/","title":{"rendered":"11 Ways To Give And Get Useful Feedback"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Suffusion<\/a><\/div>\n
\u00a0.<\/div>\n
Ask For It<\/strong><\/div>\n
Do you want more than polite conversation when you share your images? Ask for the kind of feedback you’re looking for. When you share images without a request for feedback, the number of responses you get goes down, and the content changes. Without an invitation, people often feel hesitant to share their responses. If they do, they may not know how far to go and end up not going as far as you\u2019d like them to. So, if you\u2019re looking for feedback when you share your work \u2014 ask for it. Often, you\u2019ll find people are happy to share more of their opinions with you.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Be More Specific<\/strong><\/div>\n
The way you ask for feedback can make a big difference in the kind of responses you get and how useful they are. If you don\u2019t make a specific request, the responses you get will be general and unfocused. Conversely, you can qualify the type of feedback you\u2019re giving someone. State your approach before giving your feedback.
\n.<\/span>
\nWays To Give Feedback<\/strong><\/div>\n
There are as many ways to direct the kind of feedback you get as there are ways to give feedback. Here\u2019s a list of eleven different kinds of feedback and ways to ask for it. You can ask the questions of either single images or groups of images. (You can even use this list to easily copy and paste questions when you post images online. Or make your own.)<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
1\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Numerical Ratings<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cPlease rate this image on a scale of 1-5 (1 is low and 5 is high).\u201d<\/div>\n
Optionally, you can ask for numerical ratings on a particular element.
\nAsk, \u201cOn a scale of 1 to 5, how strong is the ___ in this image?\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
2\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Relative Ranking<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cPlease rank these images from strongest (1) to weakest (highest number).\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
3\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Core Strengths<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cWhat\u2019s the best thing about this image?\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
4\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Strengths & Weaknesses<\/strong>Separate them.
\nAsk, \u201cWhat are the strong points of this image?\u201d
\nAsk, \u201cWhat are the weak points of this work?\u201d
\nOr combine them.
\nAsk, \u201cWhat are the strengths and weaknesses of these images?\u201d
\n(It\u2019s SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) simplified.)<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
5\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Improvements<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cWhat would you do to improve this image?\u201d
\nOr, ask, \u201cWhat would you do to improve future images like this one?\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
6\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Content \/ Form \/ Feeling<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cPlease rate the strength of these images in these three categories (on a scale of 1-5); content, form, and feeling.\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
7\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Identify Themes<\/strong><\/div>\n
Ask, \u201cPlease identify any themes you see in these images.\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
8\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Free Associate<\/strong>
\nAsk, \u201cWhen you see this image, what do you think of? Please free-associate!\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
9\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Feeling<\/strong>
\nAsk, \u201cWhat emotions do you feel when you look at this image? Don\u2019t hold back!\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
10\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Uses<\/strong>
\nAsk, \u201cPlease identify possible uses for these images.\u201d<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
11\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>Questions<\/strong>
\nAsk, \u201cPlease list any and all questions you can think of when you look at these images.\u201d<\/div>\n
This is just a start. There are many other ways to give and solicit feedback. Make your own list. Use anything from this list, whenever and wherever you please.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Being more specific will greatly increase the value of the feedback you ask for, get, and give.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Feedback Is Valuable<\/strong><\/div>\n
Major corporations spend thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of dollars to get user feedback on their products. They spend a lot of time refining the questions they ask before they seek feedback. They know that doing this will make the results they get much more meaningful and valuable. You can get free feedback on your social networks. Imagine if that feedback was not only supportive but also helpful?<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Giving Feedback Is A Skill That Can Be Learned<\/strong><\/div>\n
Giving feedback on images is not something that seems easy for many people. For some reason, it seems much easier to give written feedback on something that\u2019s been written. We were taught how to comment on texts in school; it\u2019s a skillset we\u2019ve learned and practiced. Unless you were an art history or a communications major, the chances are high that you weren\u2019t taught how to comment on images; this too is a skill set that can be learned and practiced. (Terry Barrett\u2019s Criticizing Photographs<\/em><\/a><\/span> is a good resource.)<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Critical or Useful<\/strong><\/div>\n
Sooner or later, we all face the same question, \u201cHow do we give useful feedback that is constructive without being negative?\u201d We\u2019ve all learned that criticism can be constructive, but it\u2019s very hard to give it well. Tough love often gets so tough you can\u2019t feel the love any more. Breaking spirits isn\u2019t useful; helping them grow stronger is. There is an art to giving feedback, one we can all learn and practice. It\u2019s quite likely that if we do this, we\u2019ll become better people and make the world a better place.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
The new field of appreciative inquiry has a great deal to offer here. (For a quick primer, read Appreciative Inquiry<\/em><\/a><\/span> by David L Cooperrider.) Psychologists use it. Negotiators use it. Businesses use it. We can too. Giving good feedback starts with a good attitude. Start with what\u2019s best about something \u2014 instead of what\u2019s worst. This is a totally different attitude than asking \u201cIs it good?\u201d, which is much too general. (Good relative to what? How good? Good in what ways?) Instead try asking, \u201cWhat\u2019s the best thing about this?\u201d After identifying core strengths, and only after, move to how something can be made even better.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Give Yourself Feedback<\/strong><\/div>\n
Self-talk is really important. What kind of feedback do you give yourself? How often? Is it helpful? You can use all of these techniques for yourself. You don’t have to wait for or be limited by others.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Feedback is valuable. So … Invite it. Guide it. Receive it. Give it.<\/div>\n
.<\/span><\/div>\n
Find more ways to boost your creativity using words.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>
\nLearn more creative techniques in my workshops.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0. Ask For It Do you want more than polite conversation when you share your images? Ask for the kind of feedback you’re looking for. When you share images without a request for feedback, the number of responses you get goes down, and the content…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[103],"tags":[6,104],"post_folder":[],"yoast_head":"\n11 Ways To Give And Get Useful Feedback - John Paul Caponigro<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.johnpaulcaponigro.com\/blog\/20373\/ask-useful-feedback\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"11 Ways To Give And Get Useful Feedback - John Paul Caponigro\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u00a0. 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