What do you do if your team is struggling with negative or critical feedback?

This starts with the leader. Modeling the behavior you want for your team is essential. Be humble. Admit your mistakes. Be vulnerable. This makes it clear your teammates can do the same. By fostering this type of environment, people feel safe to take calculated risks and innovate knowing leaders have their backs.

Fomenta una cultura de retroalimentación constructiva, donde se valore la honestidad y se enfoquen en soluciones. Promueve la comunicación abierta y el respeto mutuo, alentando a los miembros del equipo a expresar sus opiniones de manera constructiva. En lugar de ver las críticas como ataques personales, anímalos a utilizarlas como herramientas para mejorar y evolucionar. Impulsa la mentalidad de aprendizaje continuo y la capacidad de convertir desafíos en oportunidades de desarrollo individual y colectivo.

If I had a dime for every time I've heard "feedback is a gift" I'd have a lot of dimes. Here's something I think is true: Feedback can say as much about the giver as the receiver. If a team is struggling with critical feedback, then let's first examine the giver's intent. Is it "radical candor" - tough to hear but important and based in care and compassion? Or is the giver just being a jerk? When the team can tell the difference, it makes hearing the former easier... it also makes it easier to dismiss the latter. You and your team have limited energy. First get to the heart of the struggle before you decide if your limited energy should be used to overcome it.

Show the way: demonstrate how to use the feedback and improve. Pick a team member who might be early adopter and expand. Encourage your team members to team up and start in pairs first, before they can share with a wider team.

Feedback Fiesta: Fostering Openness in Your Team Feedback is a gift, but getting your team to unwrap it can be tricky. Here's how to create a "feedback fiesta" atmosphere: Vulnerability is the Key: Lead by example! Share a time you received feedback and how it helped you improve. Seeing you embrace criticism encourages them to do the same. It's Not Personal, It's Professional: Make it clear – feedback is about growth, not blame. It's a tool to make everyone and everything better. Safe Space Sanctuary: Create a safe space for open discussion. Emphasize that feedback is for development, not personal attacks.

Address the issue directly by fostering a supportive environment where team members feel comfortable expressing concerns and providing constructive feedback. Offer guidance on how to receive and respond to criticism positively, emphasizing opportunities for growth and improvement. Implement regular feedback sessions to encourage open communication and cultivate a culture of continuous learning and development within the team.

In promoting dialogue, utilize open-ended questions that go beyond "What went wrong?" Ask things like "What surprised you in the feedback?" or "What existing strengths can we leverage to improve?" This encourages deeper reflection and identifies areas where the team can excel. Dig into the why - use open ended questions like "What were the roadblocks that prevented us from achieving X?" or "How can we better structure the process to avoid this issue in the future?" This fosters deeper reflection and helps the team identify root causes, not just surface problems.

Feedback Fiesta: Let's Talk It Out! Okay team, feedback time! But it's not a one-way street. Let's turn this into a dialogue to make everyone stronger: Digging Deeper: Don't just skim the surface! Encourage discussion about why things happened and how to improve moving forward. Safe Space Symphony: Create a space where everyone feels comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings openly. Active Listening Lend an ear! Make sure everyone has a chance to speak and their perspectives are valued. By talking things through openly, we can transform feedback into a springboard for collective problem-solving. Together, we can turn those "aha" moments into action plans, making our team even better than before!

El elemento fundamental para aceptar los comentarios críticos es,...hacer que dejen de ser críticos. Yo veo que algo me ataca como crítica cuando lo que me dicen va a dirigido a mi como persona, y no a lo que he hecho. Tendrás que trabajar cómo llega esa información a tu equipo, y fundamentalmente cómo les das tu esa información. Céntrate en los hechos y no en la persona. Ante el mismo hecho tu comentario debe ser igual frente a dos personas distintas, porque evalúas hechos que deben ser cambiados. Promueve la cultura de la auto responsabilidad. No hay nadie mejor para saber que algo ha salido mal que la persona que lo hizo, porque sufre las consecuencias de manera directa. Permite a tu equipo tomar decisiones y tomarán el feedback.

Understanding your team members' listening styles is crucial when transforming feedback into actionable steps. Tailor your communication to match each member's preferred style, ensuring your feedback is received constructively. Approach these conversations as collaborative efforts, focusing on growth and improvement rather than assigning blame. By framing feedback as an opportunity for team development, you encourage a positive and proactive response. Engaging team members in setting their own SMART objectives for improvement fosters ownership and accountability. This strategy not only makes the feedback process more effective but also reinforces a culture of continuous learning and support within the team.

Feedback Fiesta: Turning Feedback into Action We've unpacked the feedback, now let's turn it into action! Here's the plan: SMART Goals: Let's break down the feedback into clear, achievable steps. Think SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals - like "Improve presentation skills by 10% within the next month" Teamwork Makes the Dream Work! Assign responsibilities and work together to implement the changes. Remember, we're a team! Regular Check-Ins: Schedule regular meetings to track progress and celebrate wins. Keeping each other accountable is key! By transforming feedback into actionable steps, we can watch our team grow and our success soar! Let's do this!

Receiving negative or critical feedback can be hard, and it can affect your team's emotions. It's important to show emotional support to your team during these times. Acknowledge their efforts and the emotional toll it takes to process criticism. Encourage them and remind them of their past successes and strengths. As a leader, being empathetic can help your team build resilience. Make sure to provide ways for team members to seek support, such as one-on-one meetings, team-building activities, or professional development resources. For instance, you could organize a team lunch or a fun activity, like bowling, to help your team relax and regroup.

Contribute by offering emotional support, aiding individuals in calming down, educating them on the incident, and providing authentic feedback to address the root cause of the issue. Guide them through possible resolution paths, using relevant use cases for clarity.

It is extremely important as a leader to create a culture of psychological safety and build a culture of giving and receiving feedback. This makes it easier for team members to give feedback as well as feel more open to receive feedback. Another aspect is to reiterate the intent behind sharing constructive feedback so it is not misconstrued as just criticism or an attack. it is important to 'carefront' and not 'confront'.

Feedback Fiesta: Building Resilience Together Feedback isn't always sunshine and rainbows, but remember, your team rocks! Here's how to support them: Acknowledge & Appreciate: Let them know you see their hard work and the effort it takes to process criticism. Strength Spotlight: Remind them of their past wins and strengths! A little encouragement goes a long way. Support Systems: Create safe spaces for open communication (one-on-ones, team building). Let them know resources are available if they need extra help. By providing emotional support and fostering resilience, you'll build a team that can weather any feedback storm. Remember, we're all in this together! You've got this!

Feedback Fiesta: Learning Never Stops! Here's the best part: feedback helps us grow! Let's embrace a growth mindset: Challenges = Stepping Stones: See feedback as a chance to learn, not a dead end. Every hurdle helps us reach new heights! Lifelong Learners: Learning never stops! Encourage your team to explore professional development (workshops, mentorships) to address the feedback. Celebrate the Climb! Applaud improvements, no matter how small. Every step forward is a victory! By fostering a love of learning, we turn feedback into fuel for continuous growth. We'll become a team that not only embraces challenges but conquers them together! Let's keep learning and keep winning!

One of the principles I have followed while giving feedback is to focus on the issue, situation, or behavior and not on the person. This approach in most cases helps avoid defensive behavior and makes the feedback more acceptable and easier to digest. The responsibility also lies with the feedback giver to objectively assess the situation, engage in frequent one-on-one sessions that act as a discussion forum to examine behaviors that require feedback, and most importantly, offer a toolkit or advice on how to manage the situation if it were to present itself again

Where is the feedback coming from and what is the specific feedback will help derive a better strategy to deal with it Offer support and help.

As a leader, it is important to explain that feedback is simply information about expectations of other... with an intention of changing or influencing future behaviours. Positive feedback tells us to keep going. Negative feedback tells us that there might be something to adjust. It is important to be curious about the feedback and what it is trying to tell us, rather than feeling judged. Some even prefer reframing the feedback (with is an evaluation of the past) into a "feedforward" statement that set future expectations. It is best to start assessing what to do with the feedback once we have addressed the initial emotionally reactivity.

Yes, it's vital for your team to be able to accept negative feedback, but I want to add another angle to this article: You. As the leader, how are you delivering the feedback? Do you know how each team member prefers to receive feedback? Do you know what they care about in order to make your message resonate? Are you controlling your tone of voice? Are you filtering your thoughts through a professional lens? Are you empathizing with their situation? Are you stating your message from their perspective and in their context? And perhaps most importantly, feedback should be about the next steps. Make sure you are inspiring hope and opportunity so that the feedback leads to a better outcome in the future.

This requires patience, and identifying root causes like unclear expectations or communication issues. Creating a safe environment fosters open communication and active listening. Providing constructive feedback training is crucial, emphasizing behavior-focused critiques. Encouraging peer support and setting clear expectations reduce misunderstandings. Promptly addressing issues prevents resentment, while celebrating progress boosts morale. Seeking professional help if needed can provide additional support in overcoming challenges. “Patience is the highest order of discipline.”

I will assist them in putting the feedback in perspective. If it's from a consumer/customer, I will help them assess what occurred during the interaction and develop learning lessons. If the feedback comes from colleagues or other leadership, I will intervene to ensure that future communication with my staff is productive; if that is difficult, I will be the first point of contact. Either way, I will ensure my employees have my support, even if they have had some learning lessons. The support would be them sharing their experience, me asking specific questions about the gap in the situation and the feedback, and then being strategic to assist the employee with identifying their own lessons.

Sounds like the team's "fed up to here meter" is reaching a boiling point because from their point of view that's the only time that get noticed. Leaders should ask themselves," When was they last time I caught my team doing something right? Did I acknowledge them for it? Give your team positive feedback shows you care and paying attention to the whole scope of work. Critical feedback will be better received when they know you see the whole picture of the value they bring everyday.

Bring in professional facilitator to shortcut the learning curve. Set up the workshop that may technically deal with communication or collaboration, but in reality unblock your team members to move onto the more painful areas once their skills have been updated.

It depends where the feedback is coming from - if it is their peers, perhaps they all need to learn how to give and receive feedback. I find that Insights Discovery can really help to provide a language that people understand and can take less personally. If the feedback is coming from management to the team, then I would suggest expectations need to be revisited - are team members clear on what they are meant to be working towards?