Feedback Tips Weekly (Archived)

“Though most of us no longer have to fend off predators, our brains are still exquisitely attuned to threats — both physical and social. It’s a vestige of how survival has largely depended on appeasing group members. Among our ancestors, eviction from the group led to a dangerous, isolated existence in the wild.” —Using neuroscience … Read more

Feedback literacy is your capacity to effectively give, ask for, seek, receive, use, and process feedback. Developing these capacities takes being in relationship with others; it’s a team sport. Let’s explore how to improve team feedback literacy. Why team feedback literacy matters Teams capable of continuously learning from each other are likelier to perform at … Read more

If you’ve read The Right Way to Process Feedback, you now know the importance of processing challenging feedback after you’ve received it. In summary, this period of processing helps us understand our thoughts and feelings about the feedback, which can help us make better decisions about it. Scroll to the end of this post for … Read more

“Research shows the habit of reflection can separate extraordinary professionals from mediocre ones.” — James R. Bailey & Scheherazade Rehman, Don’t Underestimate the Power of Self-Reflection In the past, I used to quickly move on when I received positive feedback. I erroneously thought it was the negative feedback where I should spend all my time. … Read more

The feedback giver’s mindset should be less about what do I need out of this and more about what does the receiver need to make effective use of this. It may appear to be a subtle shift but, in my experience, many feedback givers can get so caught up in their own performance — particularly … Read more

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cameron Conaway (@cameronconaway) Regarding constructive feedback communication at work, hiding emotions seems to be an unwritten role. Here’s why it can be a rule worth breaking. In several blogs, we’ve covered how giving negative feedback can create so much anxiety for the giver that they refuse … Read more

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cameron Conaway (@cameronconaway) Downward feedback typically refers to feedback given by a manager to their direct report. It can also refer to any feedback given by a more senior employee to a junior employee. If I facilitate a 60-minute discussion about feedback, at least one participant, … Read more

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cameron Conaway (@cameronconaway) Giving constructive feedback is challenging. It’s so challenging that 21% of managers avoid giving it. It’s so challenging that leaders directly ask executive coaches like Melody Wilding: “How do I overcome the fear of giving feedback?” To combat this stress, many feedback givers … Read more

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cameron Conaway (@cameronconaway) “If feedback isn’t viewed as discussable, it should be positioned as a directive.” — Mychelle Mollot Mychelle’s comment was in response to when I asked my LinkedIn connections: “What’s your advice for receiving and ultimately choosing what to do with feedback?” Her insight … Read more

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cameron Conaway (@cameronconaway) A narrative fallacy is when, in our attempt to make sense of a complex world, we construct and then believe in false and usually overly simple causes or stories about why or how something happened. Mathematical statistician Nassim Nicholas Taleb coined the term … Read more