Get More Comfortable with Delivering Feedback
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Get More Comfortable with Delivering Feedback

Providing feedback to your employees is part of being a manager. These performance conversations should feel productive and set the tone for a positive working relationship with your employee—but preconceived notions can hold you back from giving timely, helpful, and honest feedback. Here are three common misconceptions about delivering feedback and how to overcome them. 

Feedback conversations are always long and drawn out. In fact, fast feedback sessions where you simply share the behavior you’re observing and allow your team member to respond can be just as effective as a lengthy one-on-one. If they’re self-aware and self-motivated, they’ll likely acknowledge their own misstep. 

Your feedback has to be perfect. Your employee might see things differently than you do, and you may or may not be “right” the first time. If you’re willing to have a feedback dialogue rather than a monologue, you’re likely to get new information, additional perspectives, and even reactions to the feedback that you should consider.

With enough preparation, you can manage your employee’s reaction. How an employee responds to your input is based on personal factors. While you should commit to making your part of the conversation as helpful and productive as possible, also understand that you can’t control how the recipient will feel. Delaying providing an employee with feedback for fear of upsetting them harms both of you and your working relationship.

Read the full article: "Overcome Your Fear of Giving Feedback"


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Learn more:

How to Manage Feedback Like An Olympic Athlete


How to Become a More Empathetic Listener


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Vincent Maurel

Fournisseur d’assertivité et de liant dans la bonne humeur

1mo

Something essential about feedback is to let the employee express himself about the situation you want to adress, and let him do this first. Then you can express your point of view, knowing the mindset and perceptions of your employee : that enable you to adapt your content and language in order to have a better impact on the behavior of your employee

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Melinda Wells

Change Resistance Strategist • Award-winning Value Alchemist • Founder • Speaker • Author • TEDx. Reframing Resistance into Optimism.™

1mo

Delivering feedback is a crucial part of effective management, but it’s something many of us find challenging due to common misconceptions. At its core, feedback is about accountability. It helps you understand your performance and encourages you to take ownership of your growth. When feedback is delivered right, it does more than just point out areas for improvement; it also celebrates positive behaviors. This balance fosters a sense of responsibility and empowers people to enhance their skills and contributions -- simply get better.

Saif Mohammad FBCS

CIO | CTO | Digital Transformation Expert | Board Member | Global CIO 200 | CIO 100 UK | Forbes Tech Council

1mo

We have recently implemented the OKRs across the organisation globally. Complimenting this we have also adopted CFRs (Conversations, Feedback, and Recognition). The conversation has become easier for each member of the team aligned to OKRs. Giving feedback about what worked and what did not helped both of us to understand what can be improved. Finally during this discussion recognising the achievements small or big helped motivate the team.

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M.S Najjar

🌍 Consultant civil engineer

1mo

Worth attending Feedbacks are frequently linked to a fixed plan or specific design features. However, neither a rigid plan nor predetermined design elements dictate a singular implementation strategy. Instead, the optimal plan is shaped by context, circumstances, and even intuition. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the underlying factors that prompted a manager to make a decision that may appear unconventional. The hallmark of effective strategic planning is its flexibility. If your feedbacks lack this adaptability, you may face more challenges than if you had entrusted feedbacks to a passionate employee who makes decisions based on immediate circumstances.

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Sanela Lukanovic

Executive and Life Coach I Specialise in helping clients overcome perfectionism and self-criticism to live with courage, confidence and purpose I Expert in Brené Brown's Courage Work I Speaker & Trainer

1mo

That’s a great breakdown of the common misconceptions around giving feedback. One additional tip: practice active listening. Show genuine interest in your employee's perspective. This can help build trust and make the feedback conversation more productive.

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