4 steps to supercharge your team.

Hi there ??,

Welcome to 3000+ leaders reading this all over the world.

Let's get this party started. ??

"I love giving difficult feedback"

Said no one ever.

Most leaders and teams leave good money?on the table by not giving great feedback.

When your team exchanges feedback rapidly, magic happens:

???Your teams will improve faster.

?? Your teams feel more confident to innovate.

?? Your employees will learn to trust each other more.

I first learned about the “I Like, I Wish, What If” feedback framework from the Stanford d. school. This is a popular technique for teams to exchange rapid feedback without stepping on anyone’s toes. The 4 steps I'm about to describe below will giving and receiving feedback fun and not awkward ????

How does the IL/IW/WI work ???

Let’s assume your team’s struggling to give client presentations.

Step 0: Schedule a feedback session with your team.

?? Purpose: Share candid feedback on how the QBR went and ideas for improvement.

Step 1: Ask your teams to start sharing what they liked about the presentation. (The order is important)

• “I liked how we allocated more time for the Q&A section.”
• “I liked our clock management. We didn’t go over.”
• “I liked how we engaged the SVP from the start.”

Step 2 goal: Individuals share one thing they?wish could’ve been done differently.

• “I wish we had better timelines for our roll-out section.”
• “I wish we had better answers for the CMO.”
• “I wish we had smoother transitions between sections.”

Step 3 goal: Individuals share a “what if” to recommend areas of improvement.

• “What if we did a dry-run next time?”
• “What if we tried fewer slides and longer demo[s]?”
• “What if we worked together on building the agenda?”

Step 4 goal: Step back and analyze the full picture together.

I want you to facilitate the session by getting curious:

???? “Jim, what did you like about our engagement with the SVP?”

???? “Pam, how can we make our timelines better next time?”

???? “Dwight, tell me more about the new format you’re suggesting.”

Focus on 3 Do[s]

? Listen, observe, and ask questions.

? Thank people for their courage.

? Rinse and repeat.

Avoid 3 Don’ts

? Blame and shame.

? Nitpick in this session.

? Talk way too much.

Why should I use the IL/IW/WI framework ??

?

Reason 1 → Using [I like] motivates your employees.

Adding the phrase “I like” at the start of your feedback gives it more weight. Just saying “I like”?intentionally?will make your feedback meaningful to the listener.

When everyone shares what they like, team morale goes up.

Reason 2 → Using [I wish] makes feedback digestible without heartburn.?

Adding the phrase “I wish” at the start of your feedback makes it safe for the giver and receiver.

It’s a great way for teams to share constructive feedback in a pleasant way. The focus is on learning together, not blame and shame.

Reason 3 → Using [What if] will open up possibilities you didn’t know existed.

The phrase?“What if”?teaches your teams the courage to look into the future and build their risk-taking muscle. Progress can’t be made if teams don’t have the ability to future-focus.

Without a system of rapid feedback, most teams will remain stuck. I hope you try this exercise. Let me know how it goes.

Keep leading,

Ali

PS: I'm curious. What's your favorite way to get feedback from your team? Please tell me in the comments.