Birthday Bonanza
17 July 2025
For those who don’t know, I’m a [big] [fan] of [feedback]. But given that asking for feedback is hard, and people often don’t want to give it, I’ve had to come up with a rather novel solution to elicit it.
Each year on my birthday I send out a detailed [feedback survey] about me to all of my friends.
I ask quantitative questions, like how much people would recommend me to others, qualitative questions like what would expand my comfort zone. Some questions are staples, like my metric tracking (Presence, Power, Warmth and more), while other questions are temporary and change every iteration.
Many of my results will change, but only slightly, suggesting that I am stable in how I exist within the world. Sometimes I’ll have people be open and honest, vulnerable or sincere in a way that you rarely see in day to day life.
I’m glad to say I’ve been a trendsetter on this. My Birthday survey idea has been duplicated by people at Behaviourworks, the UN, and more. There’s a chance you’re reading this article right now because someone else is keen on getting feedback on themselves!
It is so difficult to actually understand how we exist within the world, and hearing the insights of others around us is a powerful lens through which to consider how we are.
Now, some of you, hearing this idea will hate it, some of you are probably curious, and some of you probably love the idea. Well, perhaps unsurprisingly, whatever you’re feeling right now, I’d love to hear the [feedback].
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