Tips for Critique & Feedback

A collection of notes for quick reference.

Asking for Feedback

Ask for feedback before you finish something. In my experience the best moment is when you reached 80% of the work done.
Always start by explaining the goal and context of the project.
Be clear about the kind of feedback your looking for (editing? visuals? structure?) and for which parts of the project and what is excluded from feedback.
Never attempt to solve a problem in the meeting. Take the feedback back to your desk and do the work there.

The best feedback comes from being invested in the goal of the project and trying to earnestly help someone achieve that goal.
Try to understand the purpose of an element before giving feedback. What’s the goal and does it fullfill that goal? Talk about things that work and don’t work and why.
Focus on the outcomes not the process of a person.
Be as precise and concrete as possible in your feedback.
Always ask first before giving subjective feedback (the stuff you “like” or “don’t like”).
Give pointers (“you could explore X”) but don’t attempt to solve a problem in a meeting. (Follow-ups exist for a reason.)