The dirtiest word at work.
Karen Wright, Master Coach
CEO Coach, Coaching Company Founder, Member - 100 Coaches
Feedback.
Rarely has such an innocent word been so burdened by misuse and misunderstanding.
If you want to strike fear in the hearts of your employees, just try saying "I'd like to give you some feedback" and see what reaction you get.
The fact is that feedback, based on its dictionary meaning, is intended to be "information about the effect of an action provided to the originator of the action" or similar.
Meaning that if a person takes an action that has a good outcome, telling them about it is feedback.
Too often, though (meaning almost ALL the time), "feedback" is the term used when a manager has to deliver bad news. And by bad news, I mean information about the degree to which an individual's behaviour is inadequate, problematic or, at an extreme, unacceptable. Here's a crazy idea - I actually think that it's this lazy default definition of feedback that's contributing to the problem I'm seeing.
Why so little good feedback? Doing that is easy, isn't it? Positive reinforcement is the best possible way to increase the chances that the person will do the thing again - remember B.F. Skinner and "operant conditioning" from first year Psychology? Not to mention an easy way to put a smile on someone's face. So why don't more managers invest more time in telling people what they're doing well? And then there's the entire body of work that is Strengthsfinder - which I summarize as the idea that the ROI on an investment in developing a person's strengths will far exceed that of an investment in trying to "fix" that same person's deficits. Which all renders me flummoxed as to why more good feedback isn't shared. Time pressure? No news is good news? Help me here...
When the only feedback conversations that occur are those related to problems, of course no one wants to have them. No one wants to initiate them and no one wants to be on the receiving end. Managers fear making someone feel bad, or more frequently making them so upset that they decide to quit. Employees live in fear of being invited to "that meeting" where, presumably, their future employability is likely being called into question (and living with that fear takes an enormous toll on mental health).
The fact is that delivering useful, developmental, compassionate, solution-oriented feedback takes a set of skills that have to be learned. The same is true of receiving that feedback - particularly if we're rarely also told when we're doing something well.
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I generally post in response to something I've heard or a trend I'm noticing. Today I'm here to share that I'm hearing more - many more - incidents of problematic behaviour being left unaddressed for too long. Meaning that there seems to be an uptick in problematic behaviour, and a commensurate increase in avoidance of having what is anticipated as being a difficult conversation.
Are more individuals doing whatever they feel is necessary in an effort to deliver results - believing that delivering will protect them from any behaviour-related consequences? I believe so. Is there less clarity about what's acceptable, let alone effective? Equally likely - more organizations need clearer modelling of values.
How to solve for this? A couple of suggestions:
Managers - please ask for training in the skills of feedback if you're not sure you know how to do it well. And sooner is better when it comes to letting someone know that they're headed in a wrong direction.
More importantly, though, I urge anyone who leads others to invest more time and attention in acknowledging the good things your people are doing. The small commitment of time and attention will reap rewards, I promise - not to mention helping shift the perception of "feedback" as something that's at least as likely to be positive as it is to be "constructive."
#feedback #strengthsfinder #mentalhealth
Operations Manager | Career Development Professional | Education | Career Services | Employability Skills | Freelance Workshop Developer | Experienced people manager trained in and committed to building effective teams
1 年I don't know how widespread this is, but based on my own experience and the experience of many clients, friends and colleagues, top performers can often get a lot of criticism (think nitpicking) while low performers receive no feedback or are praised for meager efforts. I agree managers should have training on providing effective praise and constructive criticism. The trouble is the ones that need it most won't be proactive.
Global Executive Leading Change, Product, Performance Improvement and helping startups scale
1 年Great article and thank you for sharing. I would say as leaders we are always learning and growing, for this growth to be effective it is essential to have a reciprocal relationship with the people we interact with regularly. Honest feed back is the best reciprocal model and the willingness to accept encourage and disseminate feedback makes us better leaders and people. I strongly feel it should be encourage and championed by leaders.
Exceptional Storytelling and Persuasive Communication training and coaching to help you and your team Be Unforgettable | Engaging Workshop Facilitator, Coach, Author (Bloomsbury) & Speaker
1 年When i worked in radio, I had a boss who would do airchecks with me (where you listen together to your latest radio show" where he ONLY gave criticism. When I complained, he said, "I'm not here to stroke your ego" He was a boss I'd known for years from when we were both young pups in student radio, so I pushed back ("I'm fishing for compliments. GIVE ME A COMPLIMENT, GODDAMMIT!") Eventually, I managed to get him to compromise on a system where I would tell him what I thought I'd done well, and he'd either agree or disagree. Mostly he agreed, because I knew what I was doing!!!
Founder | Leadership Catalyst | Organizational Scientist | Workshop Alchemist
1 年I agree Karen! I often refer to feedback as the "corporate F-word" because it usually comes unsolicited, negative, and emphasis past behaviour. One of my favorite thinkers on the topic of feedback is Teresa Amabile who wrote the Progress Principle and talks about it in an awesome TED talk. The ever so slight mindset shift of thinking about progress versus feedback has been a game-changer for me and the leaders I support. Thanks for shedding light on this important topic!
The Teamwork Doctor. Helping people achieve amazing things together. Advising CEOs. Facilitating strategy and team effectiveness. Sharing broadly as a best-selling author, YouTube host, and keynote speaker.
1 年Yup, true feedback, which is about as common as a four leaf clover in a field of grass, is incredibly valuable. The judgment, opinion, praise, and criticism we heap on people because we don’t bother giving constructive feedback, that crap is everywhere!