The Feedback You Resist Is The One You Need Most
When beta readers made me swallow my own advice (and why you should too)
The feedback that helps you grow isn’t the praise that makes you feel good, but the criticism you resist. That’s the feedback you really need.
The toughest feedback I got on my Forward Talk manuscript wasn’t about grammar or typos. It was about feeling pulled in opposite directions. What one reader loved, another hated. What seemed essential to some felt unnecessary to others.
Feedback is often messy and contradictory. It carries the fingerprint of the giver. Instead of dismissing what confused me, I pushed myself to uncover the deeper meaning.
This is familiar territory. Feedback is central to my work. I facilitate workshops and have developed multiple feedback frameworks—but this time, I wasn’t in the driver’s seat. I was the passenger.
When I shared the manuscript with beta readers, I had to swallow my own advice. It was ironic. However, the lessons I learned can help you too, no book needed.
1. Frame the Ask
When you request feedback, you’re mo…
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