Fast, honest feedback is like buried treasure

I was absolutely shocked to see him struggle.

After just building a new lead magnet (which I thought was brilliant)

I sent it to a friend for some fast feedback.

What he did next startled me.

He flipped on the screen recorder and filmed how he fumbled through my resource...

Desperately trying to understand my new lead magnet.

But it wasn’t his fault.

I failed.

I failed to be clear and to provide immediate value to my prospect.

And I don’t want you to repeat my mistakes.

So today I’m going to share a quick 3 step process for getting fast, honest, and immeasurably valuable feedback on your ideas:

1. Confront the enemy
2. Build your posse
3. Get you answers you need (not the praise you want)

The Enemy

When you create something - even if it’s as basic as an idea…

It’s personal.

It’s your darling.

Now… kill it (or at least be willing to)

Why?

Because we often think the biggest genius in the room is the one staring back at us through the mirror.

But nothing is further from the truth.

We are specially skilled at lying to ourselves.

So instead of taking ideas and just running with them, actively seek out direct and honest feedback.

Just like when my friend Mike recorded his impressions for 12 whole minutes, trying to figure out my convoluted spreadsheet - I got humbled fast.

So it all starts with a mindset of openness and curiosity.

Besides, what’s more brutal… a trusted friend’s direct feedback, or total rejection by the market?

Speaking of feedback...

The Posse

Every course creator that I coach, I help them build a panel of five different perspectives for feedback.

I called this group of advisors your posse.

Between a prospect, a customer, a fellow course creator, a mentor, and yourself -That’s five very different perspectives to help you evaluate any idea.

This list of people changes over time, but if you’re intentional about who you talk to you uncover blind spots faster than you ever thought possible.

Build your posse today.

Answers

I know it’s a cliché, but the best answers come from the best questions.

Far too often we settle for asking for general feedback

What we need us to be much more intentional about the questions we ask.

Beyond that, asking questions even in the wrong way can give us skewed results.

So when you ask for feedback on your ideas, avoid questions like:

• What do you think? (too general)
• Do you like it? (they’ll lie to make you feel good)
• How much would you pay for this? (leaves out too much context)

Instead, like Rob Fizpatrick suggests in the book The Mom Test, ask questions that seek to uncover intent. For instance:

• When was the last time you encountered X problem?
• What was going on in your life when you realized you need help with X?
• Talk me through why you need X solution.

Tip: “Talk me through” is a magical phrase!

Yes, these questions require a bit more work to craft, but the responses are light years ahead of basic questions.

So please trust your gut - your intuition is solid.

But be humble enough to poke at your ideas to see if they stand a little bit of constructive scrutiny.

Because if you don’t actively look for honest feedback, it’ll come looking for you in the market.

So remember… be intentional.