Feedback, as they say, is a gift. Research bears this out, suggesting that it’s a key driver of performance and leadership effectiveness. Negative feedback in particular can be valuable because it allows us to monitor our performance and alerts us to important changes we need to make. And indeed, leaders who ask for critical feedback are seen as more effective by superiors, employees, and peers, while those who seek primarily positive feedback are rated lower in effectiveness.
The Right Way to Respond to Negative Feedback
How to turn upsetting or surprising information into helpful and productive data.
May 31, 2018
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Summary.
Feedback is a key driver of performance and leadership effectiveness. And negative feedback in particular can be valuable because it allows us to monitor our performance and alerts us to important changes we need to make. But processing and acting on negative feedback is not always easy. While there are plenty of resources available on how to ask for critical feedback, there’s comparatively little guidance on how to navigate the hard feedback we receive. Five empirically-supported actions can help you hear critical feedback openly and calmly, intentionally mine it for insight, and harness it to improve without collateral damage to your confidence and self-concept: 1) don’t rush to react; 2) get more data; 3) find a harbinger; 4) don’t be a lonely martyr; and 5) remember that change is just one option.
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Difficult Interactions Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Difficult Interactions. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
Learn how to resolve those inevitable workplace conflicts.