+1 for 1st level referrals. But folks within your own social circle can be tricky because it might be hard to figure out their true opinion if your idea sucks. When a friend has sought my feedback, I find myself balancing between trying to be honest with being supportive and open-minded. I'm sure people have done the same to me.
Agreed. That's one reason the 1st level referrals are so valuable. They represent people where you have a nice solid, warm introduction, but yet they aren't your personal friends, and won't necessarily feel the need to lie to you to protect your feelings.
That said, I think part of the trick is to not just ask "do you think this idea sucks or not", but rather to ask probing questions that, in and of themselves, seem totally innocuous - but which will tell you if your idea has value or not. Figuring out how to that is part art / part science, and I can't claim to have completely mastered it myself either TBH. Still working on it...
