Exposure creates feedback hidden work cannot receive.

Work kept private receives only your own assessment, which is compromised by knowing what you intended. Other people see what is actually there, and their reactions surface problems and strengths that you are structurally unable to notice. That feedback simply does not exist while the work is hidden.

Show something in progress to a few people whose judgment you respect and ask what they actually experienced rather than whether they liked it. Listen for confusion more than praise. That information only comes from exposure.