The more I support people to take a step forward with their leadership and management style, the more the art of giving feedback comes up. So many conversations come back to “how can I possibly tell Person X about Thing Y”.
More and more the answer comes to be “can you afford not to tell them?” What is the cost of not giving the feedback? I suggest that:
- the impact on you tends to grow. A seed of a problem tends to grow into a vine, slowly strangling the relationship between you and the other person
- the missed opportunity for them to learn and grow
- the business suffers.
Good feedback and great conflict skills help you and your business flourish. There is so much guidance out there on how to give feedback well, why is this still such an issue? I wonder if part of the issue comes back to how hard it is to start implementing a new behaviour? If it is hard to start flossing – just imagine how hard it is to offer someone feedback!
So, first, I offer this article and then a suggestion – find a neutral friend or colleague and practice, practice, practice. Then, I’m afraid it is over to you – give it a try and see what happens. Who knows – it might even work!
