"Do/Try/Consider": The feedback hack

By First Round Capital

Categories: VC, Startup

Summary

A simple framework for leaders to give effective feedback - 'Do, Try, Consider' - can help founders and designers distinguish between must-do, optional, and exploratory feedback, saving time and reducing confusion.

Key Takeaways

1. Feedback from leaders should be categorized as 'Do' (mandatory), 'Try' (optional), or 'Consider' (exploratory) to clarify expectations.
2. The 'gravity' of a leader's feedback is often stronger, so explicitly naming the type of feedback can help teams understand the urgency and priority.
3. For designers receiving feedback, the 'Do/Try/Consider' framework helps filter out low-priority suggestions and focus on the most critical changes.
4. Providing different feedback types ('Do/Try/Consider') allows teams to experiment with new ideas without feeling pressured to implement everything.
5. Leaders should use the 'Do/Try/Consider' framework to be more intentional and transparent when giving feedback to their teams.
6. The 'Do/Try/Consider' feedback framework helps founders, designers, and tech professionals align on priorities and reduce confusion around implementation.

Topics

• Feedback Frameworks
• Leadership Communication
• Design Processes
• Startup Productivity
• Team Alignment

Transcript Excerpt

What feedback should I take and what feedback should I discard? As a designer, it can be tough to know, especially with leadership. It's like when I give feedback, does that mean I have to do this or was Ryan just throwing out some ideas, right? Aana came up with a framework called do, try, consider. Do is basically like this is feedback you must do. You must make this change before you can progress. Try is like I would like you to try this idea. It might not work. You definitely don't have to d...