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- [00:00]
Nicole Lapin
You know what I'm really over? Fees. Concert ticket fees, cleaning fees on weekend rentals, a processing fee for existing. It is endless. And the worst part? These fees hit hardest when you're already trying to get ahead. Fees are everywhere and they hurt you most when you're down. That's why Chime offers fee free banking, which means no monthly fees, no overdraft fees and no minimum balance fees. I once got hit with a $15 maintenance fee just because my account dipped below the minimum BAL for a single day. I wasn't overspending, I was just timing my rent payments around payday. That fee felt like a big penalty just for budgeting. But with Chime, I wouldn't have gotten charged for not being rich yet. No minimum balances, no hidden fees, just breathing room when I actually would have needed it. It is so simple. Banking should not cost you money. And with Chime, it doesn't open your account in two minutes@chime.com Help Wanted Chime feels like progress.
- [01:01]
Chime Representative
Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services and debit card provided by the Bancorp Bank NA or Stride Bank NA members, FDIC spot and eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply. Timing depends on submission of payment file Fees apply at out of network ATMs, bank ranking and number of ATMs, according to U.S. news and World Report 2023 Chime checking account required.
- [01:20]
Jason Pfeiffer
This is Help Wanted, the show that makes your work work for you. I'm Jason Pfeiffer, editor in chief of.
- [01:26]
Nicole Lapin
Entrepreneur magazine, and I'm money expert Nicole Lapin. On Tuesdays, Jason and I answer the helpline and solve their work problems.
- [01:34]
Jason Pfeiffer
And on Thursdays, I give you one way to improve your work and build a career or company you love.
- [01:39]
Nicole Lapin
And it starts now.
- [01:42]
Jason Pfeiffer
You're working on something right now and you would like feedback, which is reasonable. But let's be honest. Feedback can be hard to hear and it can make you defensive. So now you're wondering things like who should I ask and when and what if I don't like what they say? A woman named Kelly Dwyer recently emailed me because she's facing this right now. She wrote me this great question. I'm just going to read it to you. She wrote, I am a novelist working on my fourth novel. My husband and young adult daughter are both great readers and editors and I like to tell them plot and character ideas and get their feedback. However, sometimes it feels too early in the process. Emotionally. I might have an idea that they don't like, but I think think that they don't get it because I haven't figured it out clearly enough or articulated it well enough myself. So when? Is it too early to share ideas and brainstorm? Or is it okay? Kelly, I love this question because it goes far beyond writing. Kelly's question could easily be about business ideas, marketing plans, or ideas big and small. In my experience, the best feedback comes from completing this form. Formula ready? The formula is right people plus right time plus right perspective. Today I'm going to break that down for you step by step so you can get the feedback you need. Like I said, right people, right time, right perspective. So let's break it down, starting with step one. The right people beware. The right people are not always who you think they are. John Steinbeck once wrote, you know how advice is, you only want it if it agrees with what you wanted to do. Anyway, that reminds me of something that I learned as a philosophy minor in college, though sadly, I cannot remember which philosopher actually said this. But what they said was, basically nobody truly seeks advice. They just seek confirmation. In other words, when we ask someone for advice, we are subconsciously selecting them because we know what they're going to say. This isn't necessarily a problem. Sometimes you know the right answer in your heart and you just need someone to validate your instinct. But sometimes, especially when seeking feedback, you might turn to someone comforting instead of someone challenging. And therefore you won't gain what you really need to succeed. I remember running into this problem in my early 20s as a novice writer. I had started showing my work to my then girlfriend who was supportive and loved everything that I did. And that felt good, but it didn't actually help me grow cause she wasn't looking at it with a critical lens. So I eventually sought out more critical eyes. When you seek feedback on an idea, be aware of this. Pick someone who will be useful, not just affirming. All right, so that's step one, the right people. Now step two, the right time. Kelly's question was really about timing. She's working on a novel and she's trying to find the Goldilocks of feedback timing. If she asks too early, then her ideas aren't fully formed and she feels vulnerable about them and she worries that they won't be understood. But if she asks too late, she might be invested in an idea and won't be as flexible or able to respond to deeper feedback. So what she wants to know is when is the timing just right? And here's my answer. Kelly, you are asking the wrong question. Instead, you first need to decide the role that you want your readers to play. When you ask someone for feedback, you're really asking them to play one of three roles. Early stage, the collaborator. They actively help shape new ideas. Middle stage, the reactor. They say if your ideas are working or not. And then late stage, the refiner. That is rule number three, the refiner. They tweak around the edges. So again, we've got the collaborator, the reactor, and the refiner. It is your job to pick the right person for each of these roles and then to set their expectations. For example, when I was writing my book, my editor was my collaborator. I dumped the first four chapters on him and basically said, is this working? Then when it was nearly done, I asked three friends to be refiners, just telling me if anything felt missing or incorrect. All right, so that's step two, which is the write timing. And now we're going to go to step three, which is the right perspective. In 2009, my now wife, Jen, did an absolutely crazy thing. We had just started dating back then, and she was working on her first novel at the time, and she asked me to edit an early draft. She wanted a deep read with real feedback. I was to be her reactor. Like I said, this was crazy. There were so many ways it could have gone wrong, but I mean, I knew how to edit. I was a young editor at Men's Health at the time, but I'd never edited a novel before. And more importantly, I'd never edited Jen before. And I was scared of getting it wrong and blowing up the relationship. But then I had a revelation. At Men's Health, my job was to serve the Men's Health vision, right? I was an editor at Men's Health. My job was to serve the vision of the company that I worked for. And I knew the magazine's tone, voice, and perspective. So when I. When a writer would write for Men's Health, I would heavily rework their story to fit those needs. But with Jen, my job was to serve her vision. So whenever I saw something in her novel that didn't work, I would just circle the text and then basically ask, what did you want to accomplish here and how can we help get it to there better? Then we would talk it through. Maybe she needed a character to change in some way, but a particular scene or plot point wasn't accomplishing that. So we would unpack why and then come to a conclusion. This turned out to be the exact right approach. Her novel was published, and our relationship survived. It is now the approach that I take with Writers and founders alike, I want to first understand their intended destination and then help them pave the right path. The point is, when you seek feedback, find someone who can see things from your point of view. Their job is not to impose their vision on your thing. It is to understand your vision and then help you accomplish it. But in all of this, remember, success really comes down to you. It is the great irony of asking for feedback. You're asking for someone else's help, but they're really only helpful if you are helpful first. So let's break it down. Let's go back to the right people, the right time, and the right perspective. The right people. It is your job to pick the right people, and if you pick wrong, it is not their fault. The right time. It is your job to establish their role as either collaborator, reactor or refiner and to be really explicit about it. Tell them, this is the stage of the process that I'm in, and this is very specifically what I need you to do. And then the right perspective. If you want someone to see your vision, then you must articulate it. Say something like, here's what I'm going for. So if you see places where my work doesn't accomplish those things, please flag it. Talk with them, ask questions, create a dialogue. People really appreciate this kind of expectation setting because giving feedback is fraught. Everyone wants to be helpful, but everyone is also worried about tripping over emotional lines. So when you tell them exactly what you need, they'll be more relaxed and happy to help. Then you'll get what you need and you will be more relaxed and happier too. So that is how to get great feedback. Help Wanted is a production of Money News Network. Help Wanted is hosted by me, Jason.
- [09:43]
Nicole Lapin
Pfeiffer and me, Nicole Lapman. Our executive producer is Morgan Lavoy. Do you want some help? Email our helpline@helpwantedoneynewsnetwork.com for the chance to have some of your questions answered on the show. And follow us on Instagram at Money News and TikTok. MoneyNewsNetwork for exclusive content and to see our beautiful faces. Maybe a little dance?
- [10:04]
Jason Pfeiffer
Oh, I didn't sign up for that.
- [10:05]
Nicole Lapin
All right, well, talk to you soon.
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Chime Representative
Sam.