Review Round-Up: Tips to a Productive (and not Personal) Performance Review

A topic I often get asked about is performance reviews: how to best prepare for one, how to respond to and address feedback, and mostly, how to avoid the stomach-turning-into-knots feeling you might get walking into one! Yes, feedback is a gift, but honestly, I prefer mine with a bow on top.

First off, remember this is a performance review, not a review of you as a person. If you play an instrument or sport, or have any sort of hobby, you know that practice makes you better if you know what you need to work on. The same goes with your profession: you will always have something to work on—trust me on this—and you will never stop learning. If you approach your review as a coaching and learning moment, it will put you in the right frame of mind.?

And keep in mind, these tips are applicable to any line of work you’re in. Even if your world of work doesn’t require annual reviews or a formal feedback process, checking in on your performance periodically is a key ingredient to career growth.

Pre-Review Tips

Preparing ahead of time for your review will help you feel cool, calm, and collected throughout the process. You can start preparing for your review ahead of time. Be proactive by keeping a kudos folder or on-going achievement tracker through the year. This will help you quickly frame what you’re most proud of, and it’s even better if you have the opportunity to share ahead of time.

As you near your performance review, reflect on your accomplishments, future goals, and how you might achieve them.?

Review Tips

It’s time for your review—don’t panic! Remember: This is a great opportunity to celebrate how far you’ve come, and to identify a growth path forward. So my first tip is this: don’t be afraid to ask questions. You may not completely understand all of your manager’s feedback, and that’s ok! Use tactful questions to better understand their words, and to see how you can apply their feedback in your day to day.?

Then: Take notes. Don’t rely on your brain to hold all of this information because more likely than not, the nerves you’re feeling will cloud important tidbits you want to walk away with. Plus, when you take notes, you have time to digest and can schedule a follow-up if you have any additional questions.?

And lastly: Keep an open mind. Your manager may see areas of improvement that you don’t yet, and that’s normal. Quite literally, that’s their job! If you don’t agree with a piece of feedback, approach it in a professional manner to seek out why your manager feels a certain way and how you can move forward.?

Post-Review Tips

Your review is over. Now, breathe! Then, debrief with yourself—which includes celebrating! Then, think of ways you can embrace challenges as opportunities for a new season of your career. Implementing ways to grow post-review is the best way to show you’ve understood and are applying the feedback you’ve received.?

Lastly, remember that you’re not on this journey alone. You can create a support team around you—such as mentors, advocates, peers, etc—who can help you on your professional journey whenever you need, and vice versa.?

Remember: Reviews are not the end all be all, and are certainly not personal. Rather, they’re opportunities to learn, to grow, and to thrive as you continue along your professional journey.