How can you use feedback to promote self-reflection and self-awareness?

1 Why feedback matters

Feedback is the process of giving and receiving information about performance, behavior, or outcomes. Feedback can help your clients identify their strengths and weaknesses, recognize their achievements and areas for improvement, and align their actions with their goals and values. Feedback can also motivate your clients to change, grow, and learn from their experiences. However, feedback can also trigger negative emotions, such as defensiveness, anger, or anxiety, especially if it is perceived as harsh, unfair, or irrelevant. Therefore, as a coach, you need to be mindful of how you deliver and support feedback, and how you help your clients process and respond to it.

2 How to deliver feedback effectively

When delivering feedback to your clients, it is important to be specific and concrete with examples and data to illustrate your points. Additionally, you should be balanced and constructive, acknowledging both what they are doing well and what they can do better. Timeliness is also essential, as feedback should be given as soon as possible after the event or situation while it is still fresh in their minds. Lastly, your feedback should be respectful and supportive, using a friendly and empathetic tone that shows you care about their success and well-being. Encourage them to ask questions and share their perspectives while actively listening to their feelings and concerns.

3 How to support feedback reception

Supporting your clients to receive feedback can have an impact on how they reflect and act on it. To help your clients accept and appreciate feedback, you can prepare them by asking for their self-assessment of their performance, behavior, or outcome. This allows them to compare their own perception with the feedback and identify gaps or discrepancies. Additionally, validating their emotions when receiving feedback can be beneficial, as it can be emotionally challenging. Reframing the feedback as an opportunity for learning and growth, rather than a criticism or judgment, can also help them overcome any resistance or reluctance to the feedback.

4 How to facilitate self-reflection

Self-reflection is the act of examining and evaluating one's own thoughts, feelings, and actions. As a coach, you can facilitate this process by asking your clients open-ended and probing questions that prompt them to think deeply and critically about their feedback. Doing so can help your clients gain self-awareness, which is the capacity to understand and recognize their own strengths, weaknesses, values, and motivations. This can then lead to better decision-making, improved communication, and better emotional management. Examples of questions you can ask include: what have they learned from the feedback? How do they feel about it? How does it align with their goals and values? What are the implications or consequences? What are the strengths and limitations of this feedback? And how can they use it to enhance their performance, behavior, or outcome?

5 How to encourage self-action

Self-action is the process of applying and implementing one's own learning and insights, which can assist clients in translating their feedback and self-reflection into meaningful changes. As a coach, you can encourage self-action by helping your clients set SMART goals and action plans based on their feedback. This includes helping them define their desired results, breaking down the goals into achievable steps, identifying the resources they need, anticipating and overcoming potential challenges, tracking the results, and celebrating their achievements. By doing this, clients can monitor and evaluate their progress and outcomes.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?