Lulu Cheng Meservey@lulumeservey
Responding to negative feedback: are you a CodeRabbit or a Claude?
Getting dragged in public sucks, and it happens to every founder at some point. The natural instinct is to bristle and push back, but that only makes it worse
(Obvious exceptions: if the critic is a dogmatic hater or irrelevant to the business, if you're wendys or ryanair and being mean is your brand, etc. But in this case we're talking about relevant feedback from actual customers)
Instead of a kneejerk defensive reaction, try a more strategic and disciplined route:
1) Don't jump to debate the facts. All feedback contains two different things: the substance, and the customer’s desire to have their frustration heard and acknowledged. Those are discrete issues, and you need to address both.
2) Start by aligning on principles. Even if you disagree on the merits of the feedback, you surely agree that quality is important, feedback is valuable, and you're the person responsible. There’s no hope of aligning on facts if you can’t first align on principles.
3) Overindex on accountability. Take more responsibility than what seems necessary. Take so much ownership that it surprises people. This obviates their need to hector you over it and removes a lot of surface area for attack, creating space for a calmer exchange. More importantly, if you’re the founder, the reality is that every detail of your product does fall on you.
4) If you need to clarify facts, make it an explanation instead of a defense. You can state the exact same information in a way that’s either defensive and bitter, or earnest and transparent. The only difference is tone. Approach with a stance of openness and transparency.
5) If self-critique or apology is warranted, keep it straightforward. (And if it's not warranted, skip it! People can tell when it's disingenuous or forced.) No need to grovel or self flagellate. Recap the problem plainly, explain the fix, say what you’re doing to prevent it in the future, and wrap it up. Then move on!
Compare: reactions to negative feedback and how that was received, for coderabbit vs. claude