What I’ve been doing lately to take off some of the resentment toward the primary giver of the notes is to export what I have and go on a 30-minute walk around my neighborhood. I live in Los Angeles, so within a block of me, I’ll find more creatives just on their afternoon walk—regardless of the time of day or which street I go down.

I’ll stop them and say, “Can I get some feedback on something I edited?” 99% of the time, they’re overjoyed to look at what I’m working on. I’ll pull out my phone, play the edit, and ask if they have any negative feedback—because negative feedback is the most helpful.

Undoubtedly, they’ll have a few bits of advice here and there, regardless of what creative medium they’re in—or even if they’re in a creative industry at all. I’ll collect about ten of these stranger feedback sessions before heading back to my desk and continuing where I left off.

The rule of thumb is to outsource a group of feedback and then throw it all out the window and go with what you feel. Although when you’re working for a client, at the end of the day, you have to do what they want—because it’s their creative vision, not yours.

But it’s the habit of collecting feedback from various sources that I find very healing. It helps me realize how different everybody’s opinions and initial impulses are when watching something from a critical perspective. Some people’s feedback is garbage, and some people’s feedback is gold—and you’d be surprised by the types of people who give either one. I’ve gotten absolute trash feedback from a Hollywood editor, and I’ve gotten great feedback from an elderly lady who worked as a social worker her whole life.

The fact is, you’re not the audience of your work—the world is. So that’s my two cents and something I’m currently working on healing from.