Overcoming The Fear Of Feedback
It’s annual review time in many organizations and people are struggling with one of the most valuable forms of communication: feedback. People avoid feedback because they don’t like being criticized – plain and simple. But rather than waiting for the annual performance review to come along, effective leaders seek and provide feedback on a regular basis.
As more leaders learn to ask for feedback they improve their own performance and create a more candid environment. Read Fear of Feedback to learn more about addressing the challenges associated with feedback.
And here are some tips we offer clients to help make feedback part of their daily routine:
* Use an effective structure—One way to frame your feedback in a more neutral way is by telling people what you appreciate most, what you would like to see more of, and what you would like to see less of
* Be specific rather than general—Always use observable behaviors to illustrate your feedback and offer specific steps to change future behavior rather than focusing on the past
* Recognize the smallest changes—Get in the habit of recognizing small changes in people and congratulate them