Making the most of feedback

Just like exercise and eating our five a day, feedback is something we know is good for us – and also something we often like to avoid. With our enabling conversation window open until 26 February, for shoreside colleagues, now’s a great time to start flexing that feedback muscle.

Do you shy away from sharing feedback for fear of how it may be received? Do you avoid asking for it in case it’s hard to hear? These are natural responses, but sharing and receiving feedback can really fuel your growth. Here’s how you can avoid some common pitfalls and give and receive better feedback to help us all improve.

Be more specific

Most of what we consider feedback isn’t feedback at all. It’s vague, it’s unhelpful, and it leaves people wondering what they need to do more, or differently. “That was a good presentation” isn’t feedback; neither is “You keep interrupting.”

When we’re not specific, it leads to confusion and in worst cases, a defensive response.

Try this instead: The purpose of feedback is to be helpful, so stick to concrete facts and specific examples. Try to put yourself in their position and think from their perspective. Read this article for more tips and tricks.

Remember, feedback isn’t personal

We all have good intent right? A common problem which stops us from accepting feedback is that we can’t often see the difference between our intention and the impact of our actions. Maybe you noticed someone struggling, so you stepped into help. But what if this person saw your action as ‘taking over’? This kind of feedback can be hard to hear and this can lead to our emotions getting the better of us.

Try this instead: Remember that people experience your actions, not your intent. It’s natural to react to this type of feedback but try to separate it from your self-worth. Read this article to help you see past your reaction and get real value from the feedback.

Avoid the feedback sandwich

The feedback sandwich is when we sandwich ‘bad news’ with praise. This used to be a popular method but it can really backfire, so use it with caution. It can feel condescending to receive a feedback sandwich and it creates confusion too. When positives and negatives are sandwiched together, it makes it hard for the recipient to really understand what they should do differently.

Try this instead: Different feedback methods suit different situations and different people. This article explains a few different ways you could structure your feedback.

See feedback as a positive

Feedback gives you an opportunity to look at yourself in a different light and it helps you see how others perceive you. But it’s easy to see it as a personal criticism and shut yourself off.

Try this instead: Flipping your mindset will help you reframe how you see feedback. A fixed mindset sees criticism as an attack on our self-worth. Growth-mindset thinking leaves room for the possibility that we may have a blind spot. Read more here about how a growth mindset can fuel your performance.

Feedback on what’s going well

When we talk about feedback, it’s easy to focus on the things that need improving. But feedback should focus on what we’re doing well too.  

Try this instead:  Think about using a ‘stop, start, continue’ format to keep your feedback balanced. And, if you’re a manager, remember to focus equally on praise. Help your people understand both their strengths and contribution, as well as the skills they need to improve. In fact, people who don’t receive any feedback can often feel neglected and unnoticed.

What’s next?

In your enabling conversation you’re likely to hear some feedback about you, and you’re also encouraged to share some with your manager. Feedback is often something that only happens during formal conversations but really it’s something we should do more regularly.

To help you feel more confident with your feedback, take a look at Good Practice. If you haven’t already, you’ll just need to sign up with your Carnival UK email address.

And if you’re wondering where else you might want to develop, have you checked out our 5 step development planning guide and quick quiz?