Feedback Strategies

This weeks blog post looks at feedback, but instead of being on the receiving end of feedback I am looking into giving constructive and honest feedback to peers. I think looking at feedback at better others and yourself is important in a lesson like this. There is something to be said about giving and receiving constructive feedback with the end goal of bettering yourself and the piece of work you are putting out into the world. I think we will always get and give feedback on things. Sometimes it's not wanted or taken on board but its an important skill to have to be able to give good feedback and understand what good feedback looks like.

The first article I looked at, 'How to give bad feedback without being a jerk' by Adam Grant gave some good points and examples on giving constructive feedback. He starts by mentioning the 'compliment sandwich' which I thought was a great way of giving feedback to someone and have definitely used this method before. However from reading his views and thinking about it and when it was used on me, did I really hear the feedback that was being given towards me, or did I only hear how amazing I was in the beginning and end? He makes a really good point that giving feedback in a way is used to boost our own egos. If we give feedback and don't hurt someones feelings in the process its a big well done to us. The problem with this is are we really giving the feedback the person deserves. Taking are own insecurities into it and how we think someone will react is not a good trait to have when giving feedback. All we need to do is show the person that this feedback is coming from a caring place one that is more about wanting the person to succeed then tearing them down. Providing a caring approach can soften the blow of criticism and they will appreciate more where you are coming from. One point he mentioned was to ask the person if they want feedback, but I'm not sold on this direction to take. Sometimes feedback is important and essential for a company or a person to progress. Asking someone this gives a message that if they don't want it, it's not a problem when really the feedback is there for everyones benefit. If the person declines the feedback, does that mean the problem will not be fixed? I understand this is more of an exercise on letting a person know there is something they need to improve on but I just found Grants other tips on giving feedback were more interesting and something I personally would benefit from like explaining why you are giving the feedback and taking yourself off a pedestal. It was a great read and really helped me look at my own way I give feedback and how I can improve on it going forward.

The next article 'The Trouble with "Amazing": Giving Praise that Matters, an article by Jennifer Gonzalez. This article had really interesting points on why we are using words like 'amazing' and 'wonderful' wrong and how we can go forward in changing our fixed mindset ways we have developed over time. She talks about this weird feeling we get from being pushed to our limits. Although it is extremely hard to be out of your comfort zone there is a kind of gratification and joy that comes from it when you are doing it. Working on our mental strength is just as rewarding as working on our physical strength in this manner. Through proper motivation and staying away from basic phrases like 'you're amazing' and leaning more to 'that time your form was way better, you really held it in place for longer' and giving solid constructive feedback you will gain more from the experience. The 'Paula praise' was a funny visual to put on in. As someone who watched many American Idols back in the day I could really relate to what these contestants would feel when it came time to Paula's critique of them and how they were always amazing and that was always the best they sounded. There was no constructive criticism coming from her. She would just repeat the same speech which in the end would not help the contestants strive to be their best. Being told you're amazing week after week when you know yourself you can do better helps no one. We are told to be specific with praise from Gonzalez which I feel is a key point to take away from this article. Tell the person exactly what it is they are doing right and what it is that needs a little more work.Theres no harm in using words like amazing, cool and wonderful but to really build up someone be specific on what is  and even give extra detail so the person knows how they can replicate their current success and take it into the next problem or issue they face. I enjoyed how her article all seemed to lead to a growth mindset perspective on things. A lot of the tips and information she gives in the article stem from having this growth mindset and trying to change yourself from a fixed mindset. As I am new to this way of thinking it's nice to continue and get other peoples opinions and tips on bettering myself with this new way of thinking.

I really enjoyed this look into feedback and the right ways to give it. As always Im enjoying the readings on growth mindset and I feel bit by bit its helping me open my mind up and realise the way I give praise and feedback as well as how to properly receive it. I always felt ok with giving feedback to people and I would only have the best intentions when doing so but through these readings I realise that maybe sometimes my ego got in the way of giving truthful feedback or even how I might have given it was not the best way it could have been delivered. This was another eye opening exercise.

Bibliography:

How to Give Bad Feedback Without Being a Jerk by Adam Grant

The Trouble with “Amazing”: Giving Praise that Matters by Jennifer Gonzalez

Image Bibliography:

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