Jobs @ Career Consulting Limited

Return to career-consulting-limited.com
Managing
People
Managing Your Career
CV Examples
Coaching
Cover Letter Examples
Pre-Employment Tests


Feedback: Take It or Leave It ... But Get It


The expense was substantial. An immersion workshop with twelve participants sharing a common goal to hone their skills. With nervous eagerness like kindergarteners embracing school, we received input, critique, and suggestions about our work. Some of the feedback I used. Some of it I didn't. But all of it was helpful.

I haven't always viewed feedback that way. At times in my career, I've taken it more like a personal indictment than a helpful gauge; an intruder I needed to defend against, rather than input I needed to evaluate. I've even found myself akin to a workshop colleague who said he wanted input, but when he got responses different from what he expected, he argued and debated and explained. What he wanted was praise or input he agreed with, not honest reactions.

You see it's not enough to ask for feedback. You have to be open to receive it. After three days of our colleague's defensiveness, any willingness to offer anything but cursory input was stomped out. His argumentative actions lost him an opportunity for connection with fresh voices and new input. And we lost an opportunity to practice giving helpful feedback with authentic insights and thoughtful reflection.

I learned a painful lesson about seeking feedback in my first management position. Given a large assignment, I was proud of what I produced, certain it would be received as an outstanding product. Instead I discovered my work was mediocre at best and significantly flawed because I failed to seek feedback and assessment from the end users along the way. Relying only on my own thoughts and perceptions was a big mistake.

Over the years in the corporate world, I learned to view feedback as data. The more data I got, the more information I had to improve what I was working on. Realizing I was in charge of how I used that feedback data, I learned to seek it. Feedback is opinion; not fact. It's something to evaluate; not blindly accept.

But, I find when several people have the same perception, it's good to listen. When I get insights I hadn't thought about, it's good to consider them. When input is mixed, it's good to follow my instincts. But when people provide feedback with a hatchet, finding only fault rather than offering ideas for improvement, it's good to look at it with distant curiosity.

Bottom line: if you want to be winning at working you must learn to seek and offer well-intentioned feedback. I think of it like the Sicilian proverb: "Only your real friends will tell you your face is dirty." Let input, suggestions, and feedback be real friends at work.

(c) 2004 Nan S. Russell. All rights reserved.

Sign up to receive Nan's free biweekly eColumn at http://www.winningatworking.com. Nan Russell has spent over twenty years in management, most recently with QVC as a Vice President. She has held leadership positions in Human Resource Development, Communication, Marketing and line Management. Nan has a B.A. from Stanford University and M.A. from the University of Michigan. Currently working on her first book, Winning at Working: 10 Lessons Shared, Nan is a writer, columnist, small business owner, and on-line instructor. Visit http://www.nanrussell.com or contact Nan at info@nanrussell.com


MORE RESOURCES:
Employment opportunities  Department of Taxation and Finance

Search & Apply  Lowe's



Careers  UNCO News Central

Careers | Career Opportunities  West Virginia University


The Best Jobs in America in 2025  U.S News & World Report Money

Jobs- Legacy  Energy.gov



Careers  ontarioca.gov




Careers | Home  USDA.gov


Careers at TWU  Texas Woman's University




Jobs  City of Rochester (.gov)


Careers - MDOT  Maryland.gov

Careers and Jobs at CRS  Catholic Relief Services

Anatomy of a jobs promise  Financial Times



Working for ICE  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Newsroom




The Future of Jobs Report 2025  World Economic Forum

Employment Opportunities  Alabama Department of Public Health


Careers  The Ocean Cleanup

Careers  Fred Hutch News Service

Work for the City of St. Louis  City of St. Louis




Careers  BASF








Work With Us  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration



Career Opportunities  Gilead Sciences

Careers  West Virginia Department of Education


Careers  Washington State University





Nursing jobs  VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs








IOM career gateways  International Organization for Migration (IOM)

Job Search Results  UnitedHealth Group



UF Health Careers  UF Health - University of Florida Health




Careers at Prairie View A&M University  Prairie View A&M University





Job Opportunities  Bellevue School District




How to Apply  FEMA


KPMG Careers  KPMG








Join our team  FHI 360




Students and graduates  JPMorgan Chase

Need More Information?
Site Home | Site Map | Links | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
© Career Consulting Limited.com 2011

tumblr visit counter