Rules Of Management

RULE 92 - Seek feedback on your performance

“It is better to have enough ideas for some of them to be wrong, than to be always right by having no ideas at all.”
Edward de bono, lateral thinker

Now usually we don’t go round seeking approval because we can follow our gut instincts and we know when we have done a good job. But feedback is always a good thing. You should seek feedback from your peers, your rivals, your team, your bosses and your customers. You are not seeking praise, approval, or love, merely feedback. Remember you are all in the same team – from the junior right up to the CEO, all kicking towards the same goal, all waving the same flag – or should be.

You should seek feedback to:
- Identify your strengths and weaknesses
- Compare the feedback with your own assessment of any situation – to make sure you are on track and realistic with your own self-appraisal
- Learn from a situation where you went wrong – or got it right – for the next time
- Identify problem areas that need action and over which you have responsibility
- See how your team is performing – as additional information to your own assessment.

See, none of this involves praise or approval (or love). It is a realistic appraisal of a situation or project so you can learn and move on.

Now, how do you ask for feedback? Well, asking people in the team is easy, ‘so, team, how did we do?’ They’ll tell you all right.

Next, your boss, ‘so, boss, how did I do?’ Again easy.

Customers? Easy. ‘Is there anything we could do to improve the service / product / delivery times, specifications / proposal?’ They’ll tell you all right as well.

Colleagues? Just ask. ‘So, could you give me some feedback on how you saw the relocation go off?’ Or, ‘Could you tell me how you think we (you and your tem) sid with the exhibition?’ Or, ‘Any chance of some feedback on the cost-cutting exercise / new accounting procedure / staffing levels over the summer holidays / new theme park ride?’ Don’t preface it with, ‘Can you tell me where I went wrong?’ or, ‘I know the relocation went off appallingly but I don’t know where we screwed up.’ Or, even worse, ‘Help me out her can you, I done wrong but no one will tell me what I did?’ Don’t give anyone your judgment of the situation in advance. Let them tell you the good and the bad. Just not at it all and say ‘Thank you’ and move on.

“Let them tell you the good and the bad. Just not at it all and say ‘Thank you’ and move on.”

posted by Right Ranger @ 9:38 PM