
Criticism, Cheerleading, and Negativity - fogus
http://al3x.net/2009/12/06/criticism.html
======
CodeMage
Great post. The only detail I disagree with is found in the following excerpt:

 _"That sucks" is negativity. "That sucks, here's why, and here's how to fix
it" is criticism, and it comes from a place of love. That's the difference._

I agree with this in general, but sometimes I don't really know how to fix the
thing that sucks. Yet I'm still passionate about the thing I'm criticizing and
I'm not doing it as an expression of negativity. It's just that I can plainly
identify and explain what is wrong, but the fix is beyond me.

~~~
alex_c
I agree. The most common example for me is visual design. I know when
something is ugly, but that doesn't mean I can actually create something
better.

~~~
lovskogen
You might find the answer after 5 Why's.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5_Whys>

------
nostrademons
Another way of putting it:

It all comes down to details. An effective critic can point out _why_
something sucks, _what parts_ of it suck, _under what conditions_ it may suck,
_what other alternatives_ might not suck, and _how to improve it_ so it
doesn't suck any more.

A hater only knows that it sucks. A cheerleader only knows that it rocks. In
both cases, their opinion is completely binary: it either sucks or it rocks.
There's no room for nuance or shades of grey in that assessment.

I suspect that passion is correlated but not causative here. When you're
passionate about something, you tend to notice the details. That's the same
skill that makes you an effective critic. But you can remain an effective
critic even when you're no longer passionate about something. Take Jamie
Zawinski, for example. His opinion on software matters to a lot of people,
even though he probably cares a lot more about nightclubs these days. That's
because he spent 10-15 years being exceptionally passionate about software,
and in the process accumulated the skills he needs to make informed, nuanced
judgments.

------
Xixi
I understand your point. I've work with people at both extremes:

\- Negative people ruins ambiance and creates resentment. They think
everything is doomed, and criticizes everything all the time. Their usual last
words : "Anyway it won't work".

\- Cheerleaders as you are calling them refuse to face the real problems,
delaying the inevitable until it's too late.

None of these attitudes are productive, and they are not held by people who
both care and grasp the situation. Sometimes cheerleaders care, they just
don't understand what's happening (eg managers who don't understand anything
about technology...).

By saying "here's why, and here's how to fix it", you show that you care, so
you're definitely on the right path. The problem is that once you've said
"That sucks" whoever you are talking to will stop listening. So it doesn't
matter whether you say "That sucks, here's why, and here's how to fix it", or
just "That sucks". It's pretty much the same.

And that's the hard point. How to make people understand that something is
wrong without making them go defensive. A common "trick" is honest praise.
Honest. It must absolutely be honest otherwise it will fail. Something
positive. Just find something great, praise it, and only then you can throw
your critic, in a humble way. A critic must never feel like a critic, but more
like an encouragement.

It might sounds stupid, but it works. It's often easier to have people do a
u-turn by pushing them forward.

And it will give much more weight to your words when you actually have to
throw a "Well, if we continue like that, we're doomed.". If you are known are
someone positive, that will make people think...

------
jackchristopher
I criticize by creation, not by finding fault. - Michaelangelo

From this old but good HN thread on criticism:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=424699>

~~~
seanstickle
Not to be too critical, but that quote is traditionally ascribed to Cicero,
not Michelangelo. (Though sourcing the quote to something that Cicero
_actually_ wrote is absurdly hard on the Internet.)

------
SlyShy
Yup, this is a great point. Writing is an act that requires a lot of feedback.
Unfortunately a lot of (poor) writers can't tell the difference between well
meaning criticism and soul crushing negativity. I hate phrases like, "If you
can't find something nice to say, don't say anything at all."

Criticism is an absolutely fantastic tool in entrepreneurship. Want an idea
for a company? Try someone else's product and write down all the problems with
it. After having to put up with the Common Application as provided by
Hobsons.com I can't wait for someone to take a crack at putting them out of
business.

------
KevBurnsJr
Many indigenous cultures have evolved a natural distrust of people who smile
too much.

~~~
fnid
That's interesting. I've noticed that over time, in pictures, people smile
more. Compare pictures of people today with pictures of people from the
1800's.

~~~
rdoherty
That's usually because exposures took many minutes in early photography.
Smiling for 5-10 minutes wasn't really possible :)

Some photographers even used metal rods to hold people's heads in place.

------
maddalab
It is true that cheerleaders when treated wrong will disappear and critics
will weather the storm with you, it is with the caveat, in most context.

In the context of corporate culture and internal critics, I have seen numerous
occasions when critics have left after weathering the storm when corporate
bosses do not share the same passion towards users (employees and customers).
In such scenarios critics have little to no control to implement fixes and are
labelled negative under the definition of not meeting business goal (read:
does not make the boss look good).

This may very well be because 'in American culture, that criticism and
negativity go hand-in-hand', tho, I think this is unlikely.

------
mpakes
Good post.

Two resultant things that bother me:

1) Many people avoid constructively criticizing others' work primarily
_because_ it is so frequently mistaken for negativity. Criticism is a
necessary part of continuous improvement. I find myself frequently encouraging
others to take no fear in criticizing my work, because I otherwise receive
little valuable feedback. If it sucks, I _need to know_ , and I need to know
_why_.

2) The common desire for cheerleaders breeds "fake cheerleaders" looking for
acceptance and praise. These people provide no value, and worse, can lull
people into a false sense of success.

------
messel
Criticism can be done with a positive or a negative twist. Agree with the
author that showing approval or casting insults is independent of criticism.

Being passionate about something doesn't mean ignoring the nuances of social
interaction. It means caring enough to learn how to best suggest positive
changes. Also, if we accept the possibility that our assumptions are false it
can lighten the severity of our criticism.

It's hard to listen to a loud mouth know it all, even if you know they're
right. The social inclination is preference to crash and burn and drag them
down with you.

------
chipsy
The worst thing to happen to a critic is to have to talk to a person who
complains about their problems but is mainly looking for comfort, not
solutions. Advice in these instances is met with variations on "no, that's too
difficult," or sometimes angrily: "stop bugging me, I don't want to change
what I'm doing!"

At different times in our lives we come from both angles and sometimes it's
hard to know which one the person is looking for.

------
ypavan
Summary:

It’s not the easiest way to approach the world, but the cycle of passion,
criticism, vulnerability, conflict, and resolution is perpetually educational.

------
lovskogen
From whom the critic comes from is also of value. "It sucks" from my mother,
and "it sucks" from a professional designer often means two different things.

------
xcombinator
As a critic myself, I don't think someone that is a good critic will disable
comments(critics) in his blog.

------
diN0bot
i don't think passion is the defining difference between criticism and
negativity. if anything it is _thoughtfulness_ or possibly _respect_.

------
known
And _I celebrate my failures._

------
Confusion
Unfortunately, Alex is making the exact mistake he outlines. In criticising
the notion that criticism is associated with negativity, he tries to associate
criticism with love. He says:

 _The reason a person is critical of a thing is because he is passionate about
that thing. In order to have a critical opinion, you have to love something
enough to understand it_

Now you may say that you don't really _care_ about something, unless you're
critical of it, but saying you have to _love_ it, because you are critical
about it, is a bridge too far. That would have exactly the same kinds of
problems as the association with negativity.

