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TRANSCRIPT: Often you’ll get feedback that comments on how other people performed, such as everyone in your class or team, rather than about your own work specifically. This feedback can often feel unhelpful and irrelevant to you; however, even generalised feedback like this can contain invaluable pointers to help you improve.
It’s vital to be open to the possibility that comments about other people’s work might apply to you, too. So think back to your own work, while you work methodically through this feedback. And for each feedback comment, ask yourself: Could someone say this about my work too? Would it be fair if they did? You might even try scoring the feedback: giving each comment a low score if it definitely would not apply to you personally, and a high score if it definitely would.
Doing this requires humility. It’s tough to accept that a criticism that wasn’t specifically addressed to you might still apply to your work. But try hard to be honest with yourself, because acknowledging your possible weaknesses is an important step towards improving them.
It’s completely fine to decide, after reflection, that a particular feedback comment just doesn’t apply to you: after all, it’s highly unlikely that every comment made about other people or a whole group of people is also true about you. However, it’s still important to spend time reflecting on other people’s mistakes and misconceptions, even if you haven’t made those errors yourself, as this can deepen your understanding of what makes your own work strong. Was it just by luck that you avoided these mistakes? Can you be sure of avoiding the same issue next time?
Some comments from other people’s feedback or group feedback might be relevant to you in future, even if they aren’t right now. For example, you might receive group feedback that talks about an advanced skill, when you’re still mastering the basics. But taking note of this feedback could help you to develop your advanced skills more rapidly, once you reach that stage.
In sum, next time you receive group-level feedback, or you find out about someone else’s feedback, keep an open mind and assess the possibility that each comment is actually about your work too! By reflecting both on the feedback that does apply to you, and on the feedback that doesn’t, you can turn the impersonal into personal.
Practice Activity
Practice Activity
