Feedback

 

Feedback is often called the breakfast of champions. When I started my career, I thought that if you had good relationships with people, they would provide you with feedback. What I’ve learned, however, is that you truly have to seek it out.

Kim Scott, author of Radical Candor, provides four suggestions for getting feedback from people (more here). The first rule is to ask an open-ended question For example, you might ask, “What can I stop doing or start doing that would make you more productive?”

Second, once you have asked the question, remain quiet. Do not talk at all, so the person has time to think about the question and is forced to break the silence by answering it.

Third, listen with the intent to understand, not to respond. Often, when people ask for feedback, their first reaction is one of defensiveness. Once you start with a defensive response, it will be harder to get feedback from that person in the future.

Lastly, you need to reward the feedback. It is not enough to thank the person tor the feedback. You need to act and show the person that you have listened. One of Scott’s points is that you have not answered the feedback unless you have overcorrected for it.

All of us, no matter our position, need feedback to learn. I challenge you to use this four-step approach and tell me how it works.

As always, your feedback is appreciated.