I published a post in September last year with my framework for getting feedback on draft documents.
I’ve updated my framework by adding a third question:
- What’s wrong?
- What’s missing?
- What can be simplified?
Anytime I share a draft piece of work with someone, I ask these 3 questions. And in my experience so far, >95% of feedback falls into one of these 3 categories.
I also like how it sets a tone and expectation.
Regarding tone, the 3 questions say I’m open to—and genuinely interested in—the reader’s opinion. This is different to the person who asks for “feedback” but is doing it to tick a box, and really has no intention to act upon it.
Regarding expectation, I’m signalling with my questions that I expect a thoughtful reply. I explicitly ask the reader to be on the look out for errors, for details I may have missed, and for complexity in my thought or language that may obscure the message. People rise to expectations.
I stress again, it isn’t just about the questions, but also about the tone and expectation behind them.
If you end up giving the framework a go, let me know what works for you, and also if anything breaks!