You need one friend who cheers and one who critiques. Don’t confuse which one you’re talking to.

You need both kinds of voice, and they do completely different jobs. The one who cheers keeps you going on days you would otherwise stop. The one who critiques stops you putting out something you will regret. Trouble starts when you bring the wrong one to the wrong moment, asking for a hard opinion when what you needed was steadying, and neither of them is failing you there.

Before you show somebody your thing, say which you are after. Ask for honest notes, or ask for someone in your corner today. People are usually glad to be told.