Tips to Better Manage and Handle Feedback

Receiving feedback often feels like a daunting exercise. It can leave employees overwhelmed with unfavorable emotions such as apprehension, uncertainty, worry and a lack of confidence. Feedback and constructive criticism for many is a difficult conversation.

When you look at the bigger picture, feedback is simply a constructive way to improve. Feedback contains the kind of information and insights you need to better yourself.

Think about it from a company or department perspective. When employees give feedback on an employee satisfaction survey or Glassdoor, they're building a greater employee experience. A company that knows how to handle and implements feedback effectively from employees is more successful in attracting and retaining top talent.

Being a good sport about receiving feedback is also an invaluable skill. Remember, feedback is essential to learning, developing and growing. Here are a few tips to better manage and handle these difficult conversations.

Don’t Take It Personally and Stay Positive

First and foremost, feeling frustrated, anxious or uncomfortable when receiving criticism is normal. As humans, we don’t like to have our flaws pointed out to us. Remember, you’re not alone and millions of people receive feedback every day.

While we inherently take feedback personally, try to stay level-headed. Comments or suggestions can feel like a direct attack on your entire self. Remind yourself this conversation is only to help you better yourself.

Make It Into a Conversation

Feedback should not be one-sided. Keep the conversation lines open throughout the discussion. Don’t be afraid to probe. Asking the right questions will bring about more valuable feedback.

This discussion should be a mutual process to grow and learn; They may have valuable information to give you and you may have suggestions for them as well. Your manager may gain insight into ways to streamline workflow or job duties.

A feedback conversation should be held in a low-key environment, like a quiet corner of the office. If your manager tries to have the conversation in front of others, kindly ask to relocate to a quieter area or away from coworkers.

Address the Positives

One of the most important aspects of giving feedback is also highlighting the positives. You can expect to hear both positive and negative feedback. While the intent of a feedback conversation is to explain how an employee can improve, most people are motivated by praise. Ask for strong points as well areas that need improvement.

Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help

There is power in vulnerability. Improvement is mutually beneficial - not only are you learning from your mistakes and bettering yourself, but your manager also learns more about the team’s strengths and weaknesses to help the entire organization perform better.

Additionally, if you find yourself in an uncomfortable position discussing your performance, you can always ask for a third party to sit in on the discussion. There is nothing wrong with asking for company during a difficult conversation.

Put a Plan Into Action

Once the conversation is coming to an end, consider summarizing what you’ve learned. Restating feedback lets the other person know that you understood what they said and you lessen the risk of taking in the wrong lessons. Also, restating the feedback you received allows the other person to feel heard.

For any goal to happen, it needs to be specific. Don’t be afraid to outline ways for self-improvement. This shows initiative and that you care about your role.

You can identify key areas where you’d like to improve and concrete ways you’ll achieve them. Specificity and relevance are essential. If you develop the plan together, your manager will be more engaged and have a better handle on expectations.

There are numerous ways you can approach learning and development. To yield the best results, be open-minded to different solutions such as personal development programs, online learning, on-demand training, mentorship programs and/or social learnings.

Remember, feedback is an ongoing process and essential within the world of corporate training and development. It's the holy grail that enhances learning, creates engagement and promotes communication.

It's especially difficult to hear the first or second time but you’ll come to learn that feedback gets easier with time and helps your growth. With time, not only will you get better at receiving feedback, but when you’re in a position to give feedback, you’ll better understand how to give and receive feedback.