Rating Phobia and the Value of Feedback

I’ve just read with great interest the discussion regarding the current Biznik <a href="../forums/community-wide-general-discussion/topics/the-new-rating-system" title="Biztalk - article rating ">articles rating system</a> and the upcoming renovation of it.  And I’m... intrigued. Yes, there were fantastic suggestions and passionate arguments for various solutions: Should we have simply a “thumbs up” and “thumbs down” system so that no one can receive a zero?  Or just a “thumbs up” option? Should no one have to risk low readership/visibility due to a low score? Should we give members an option to not be rated? Should we replace the numerical ratings with different options that a reader could check,  such as “entertaining,” “inspiring,” “helpful,” “original,” or “paradigm shifting”? But this article isn’t about the article rating system (see the <a href="../forums/community-wide-general-discussion/topics/the-new-rating-system" title="Biztalk article ratings">Biztalk post</a> that’s been going for months about that.) It’s about Rating Phobia, and our fear of any feedback that might be less than encouraging.  It’s about the danger those fears may ultimately pose to our very livelihood. Members confess to being afraid to write articles due to less-than-stellar ratings in the past, or fears of low ratings in the future.  There are cries of “not fair” for low ratings given to writers who are known experts on their topics. There is concern about the feelings of the writers, the fairness of the ratings system, and the impact ratings might have on the article’s reader traffic. While I believe all of these concerns are perfectly legitimate, let me play devil’s advocate.  Because I think I am hearing something in the community psyche that deserves to be brought from the subconscious out into the open. Why are we so afraid of ratings?  Why NOT have a system that rewards peer-pronounced “excellence,” and a system that lets others know when to "try harder"?  Are we here to develop ourselves as entrepreneurs, or just feel warm and fuzzy? As a singer-songwriter, I belong to an organization that lets us submit our original songs for critiques by industry experts.  (Taxi.com)  These same industry experts then have the power to “forward” the song to a publisher, producer or music director who might be looking for just such a song. After two decades as a songwriter, I finally felt confident enough as a songwriter to submit my songs to such scrutiny.  I spent many hundreds of dollars recording my first demos.  I was proud of them.  One song seemed a perfect fit for a Sheryl Crow album.  Another would make a beautiful country radio duet.  They were great songs, after all, my friends loved them! So I sent them off for multiple critiques from multiple industry experts.  I waited for weeks on pins and needles, and one day, the feedback arrived.  On a scale of 1 to 10, I received a whole lotta "5's" sprinkled with some 6's and occasional 7's, a couple 8’s as well as 4’s in the various categories.  (You neeed mostly 10’s to get a song “forwarded.”)  The message was clear: it was a big, huge "TRY HARDER." And do you know what it made me do?  After some brief sulking and  disappointment that I didn’t get the thumbs up approval I had hoped for (and had spent a lot of money to record songs that needed re-writing), I tried harder. I hired a songwriting coach.  I took workshops and got feedback from every songwriter I respected.  I re-wrote what used to be my best songs into my new best songs, and started working with co-writers who knew things I didn't.  I went to multi-day workshops and hired a second songwriting coach for a private consultation. Nearly four years later, I am a great frickin’ songwriter.  Professional musicians ask me to co-write with them.  My songwriting coach asked me to co-write with him!  I still have room for improvement, and I still ask for (and use) feedback. Personally, I think it is helpful to have ratings, as a reader, a writer, and an entrepreneur.  In Biznik, ratings provide a quick helpful, clue to the reader as to what articles might be most valuable.  I have read many of the highest-rated articles and have learned a LOT from them.  (Biznik’s top-rated articles are better than any I’ve found in business magazines.) I have also read some of the lower-rated articles, to see if there was a difference. The truth is, they tend to be not nearly as helpful and/or not as well written.  Sure, we could develop a system to neutralize the rating-produced "inequities", but would it really serve us? I'm fascinated with our indie-biz community rebellion on the matter.  I do "get" it. After all, I went to Evergreen State for awhile, the college with no grades.  We don’t want to squash creativity, impose our views on others, or bring anybody down. But this is business, it isn’t school.  And we each have a built-in feedback system for our businesses.  It’s called “sales.”  (Or in the current economy, perhaps “survival” of your business.)  We’ve got to learn to “correct and continue” or we’ll be looking for a J.O.B. before we can say “feedback, please!” And as Tony Robbins points out, being “good” at what we do is no longer enough.  People who are “good” at what they do are a dime a dozen.  We’ve got to be outstanding.  And when we are, our success will increase exponentially, not incrementally. To become outstanding, we’ve got to learn to give, receive, and love feedback, whether the feedback is ratings or other forms.  I believe our ability to do so will make the difference between “good” and “outstanding,” between “surviving” and “thriving.” 1. Ask for feedback as a habit.  Poll your clients, hand out feedback sheets, ask if what was the best part of a customer’s experience with you, and what could have been done better. 2. Don’t take it personally.  (Even if it is.)  Feedback is simply feedback – it’s one person’s opinion.  If one person trashes your article or your service, it may say a whole lot more about them than your article or service.  If 5 or 10 people don’t like it, listen up. 3. See feedback as a gift.  Understanding how you are viewed by others is critical in business.  Feedback creates the incredible opportunity to learn how are you are seen by others.  In business, we generally call this “market research,” and it doesn't always come cheap.  So welcome voluntary feedback!  (And if nobody's giving you any feedback, that's feedback, too.) 4. Aim for learning, not approval.  Don’t see any experience as a “mistake” or a “failure,” but reframe everything as a “learning experience.”  Dis-attach yourself from the outcome, and make learning your goal, not high approval ratings. 5. Dare to be really sexy!  If success is sexy, and if you’ve got to be willing to make “mistakes” to be successful, then be willing to be really sexy!  Learn to love being out of your comfort zone; it’s where all the growth happens.  Don’t beat yourself up for trying and “failing,” just notice how sexy you’re getting!  6. Turn it into a game.  Are your articles rated an average of 6.2?  Then play a game and to increase that to a 7 or an 8 or obtain “expert” status.  In business, set feedback goals and make a game out of reaching them. 7. Consider the value and accuracy of the feedback.  I didn’t always agree with the songwriting coach.  When the coach wanted to strike my favorite line from a song, I polled the other songwriters for their viewpoints.  The room voted with me, and I kept the lines.  In business, our customers are our “audience,” and their cumulative feedback is critical.  If I wish to write for paying audiences (and not just a hobby), I have to pay attention to the collective voice of my listeners and colleagues. 8. Take action on the feedback.  How might you write an article differently next time?  How can you use feedback in any situation to improve your service or products? 9. Give as well as receive.  Give thoughtful and useful feedback to others, that will invite the same in your direction.  Don’t be afraid to give a critique or suggestions, but only in a constructive manner. I agree that the rating system can be problematic, and I applaud Dan and Lara for asking for feedback to improve it.  (There’s that word again!)  But let’s not ask to be coddled with a mere “Thumbs up!”  It’s not a reflection of the reality in which our businesses exist. We might have outgrown school and grades, but the “real world” is tougher than our teachers ever were.  And if we’re afraid of feedback amongst our peers, how will we ever develop our skills, ourselves, and our businesses?  Let’s be a community that pushes each other to higher standards, not one that limits our available feedback options to “I Like It!”  (Please, rate this article.)   2008-10-27T09:46:52Z

2008-10-28T04:52:23Z

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rating-phobia-and-the-value-of-feedback

2008-10-28T04:52:16Z

A devil's advocate point of view about numerical ratings, and 9 tips to getting the most value from any feedback you might receive.

Rating Phobia and the Value of Feedback

2009-09-12T08:16:46Z