Can't seem to let it go, but too much to say. My mind is a running stream stretching out by the side of a willow tree (Paul Weller)

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Feedback. As indicated previously, I have struggled with it in the past.

Like many, I've always felt vaguely uncomfortable with people watching and appraising me. I find that uncomfortable feeling hard to shake. I struggle to accept compliments; don't find I need simple reassurance and I am certainly not aching for unwarranted criticism thanks very much.

Doesn't leave a lot of wriggle room, huh.

Seth Godin's belief is that the person giving feedback needs to be 'someone who understands genre and has the insight to share what they know in a way we can use'.

Absolutely. I've yet to experience it that often (Colin Prentice, Roger Moses - both from the 1980s - take a bow). So, I'd guess that it's rare.

Seth Godin has some good advice around this:

A simple approach to learning how to solicit and receive feedback: Begin by showing a well-meaning peer someone else’s novel, painting, design or business plan…

You might discover that when you show it to a friend (“here’s a chapter from a novel I’m writing” or “Here’s the logo my firm is considering”) you get harsh, direct criticism, filled with certainty and warning.

It’s easier to hear, because it’s not your work. They’re busy criticizing a chapter that JK Rowling wrote, or a logo that the late Milton Glaser created.

I just need to work out how I could adapt this idea for teaching/leading a school.