Before you critique

Before you offer critique, it’s important to know what you’re critiquing. Specifically: what’s it for?

An all-are-welcome community choir is not meant to perform at elite levels. That’s not what it’s for.

A school bake sale is not meant to test the chops of skilled bakers. That’s not what it’s for.

A financial report is not meant to entertain. That’s not what it’s for.

It’s not that these examples are beyond evaluation. But critique — if it’s even warranted at all — should be aligned with the thing’s intention.