I'm a "feedback is fantastic" person at heart. I love learning about how others perceive work I have done, hearing what I've done well and how I can improve. But sometimes responses I get are...not great. Vague, overly positive, and needlessly critical commentary doesn't help anyone!
So, given my love of feedback, today I thought I'd share with you the top 3 things you can do to offer helpful feedback!
π£ ππ²π ππ½π²π°πΆπ³πΆπ°! It can be overwhelming to offer feedback sometimes, I get it! But in order to be useful, feedback has to get detailed. It can't just be vague affirmations or criticisms. "I loved the presentation!" is nice but it's not very helpful. "I really appreciated how you focused on data in the second section and tied it back to the story" is something I can run with!
π£ ππ»πΌπ ππ΅π² π»π²π π πππ²π½π! If you have a problem with the work I am doing, I want to know! But don't bring me a problem without having given some thoughts to alternatives, solutions or best case scenarios. "This isn't going to work" makes all the work grind to a halt. "This isn't working, what if we tried it this way instead" opens up a world of possibilities!
π£ ππ² π½πΌππΆππΆππ²! I know this one feels like you're pulling your punches. BUT, you can offer critique and displeasure without being negative. The key is in the phrasing: "You are the problem" isn't going to make me anything but bummed out. "You are the only one who can fix this" makes me feel empowered. Your colleagues are grown ups, they know they're going to make mistakes, but feedback is about reframing those mistakes into an opportunity to do better.
Do you love giving feedback? Getting it? What would you add to this list?