Why is feedback important for your career development?

Feedback is crucial for career development, serving as a catalyst for personal and professional growth. Adopting a growth mindset is essential in this context, as it involves viewing challenges and setbacks as opportunities to learn and improve. Confucius' quote, "The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life," emphasises the importance of seeking understanding and knowledge. In the context of career development, asking for feedback is akin to asking questions—it shows humility, a desire to learn, and a commitment to improvement.

O feedback é uma das ferramentas mais importantes para o desenvolvimento de carreira de qualquer profissional, sendo fundamental para ajudar a identificar pontos fortes e áreas de melhoria possibilitar o crescimento profissional e melhorando a comunicação entre colegas de trabalho e seus lideres.

Feedback is not only a tool for improvement, it's a mechanism for continuous learning. The process of both giving and receiving feedback opens up channels of communication and encourages a culture of openness and honesty. By creating an environment where feedback is encouraged and valued, organizations can foster a culture of continuous learning and improvement, ultimately enhancing overall performance.

Feedback is very crucial for career development as it provides valuable insights, highlights areas for improvement, and fosters continuous learning, enabling individuals to enhance their skills, performance, and overall professional growth. Constructive feedback provides individuals with valuable insights into their strengths and areas needing refinement. In short Feedback acts as a catalyst for continuous learning & development, propelling individuals toward success in their careers.

Feedback is a key player in the world of business coaching, playing a crucial role in career development. Its benefits go beyond just fixing mistakes, offering a broader perspective on strengths and areas for growth. Constructive feedback becomes a foundation for refining skills, improving performance, and fostering continuous development. It's not just about course correction; it's about using feedback as a tool for becoming a more resilient, adaptable, and ever-improving professional. In the pursuit of career success, feedback is an invaluable guide, helping professionals shape their path towards excellence.

Feedback from colleagues at partner organizations, networking partners, fellow volunteers, and others you interact with but don't serve directly gives an added perspective. The main thing to remember when getting feedback is to stay open to it and let the other person feel safe in sharing. Don't debate it or argue. Just accept that this is how the other person perceives you and then decide if you want to do something about it. We don't always come across the way we intend to or think we do.

Gathering feedback from diverse sources is essential for holistic career development. Your manager or supervisor offers insights into your performance and growth potential. Peers and co-workers provide valuable perspectives on teamwork, communication, and interpersonal skills. Client and customer feedback reflects service quality and satisfaction. Self-feedback, through reflection and self-assessment, offers a unique dimension. By embracing feedback from various sources and comparing their perspectives, you gain a well-rounded understanding of your strengths and areas for improvement, empowering your career journey.

Feedback from diverse sources is instrumental in your career growth. Your manager evaluates your performance, progress, and potential, offering critical insights for advancement. Peers and colleagues provide valuable feedback on teamwork, communication, and interpersonal skills, fostering collaboration. Clients and customers contribute to your professional development by assessing service quality and satisfaction levels. Self-reflection is equally crucial, as it helps you identify areas for improvement and refine feedback-seeking behaviors. By soliciting feedback from multiple sources and comparing perspectives, you gain a well-rounded understanding of your strengths and weaknesses.

Getting negative feedback can be really tough, especially since how we came across was not how we intended. Fortunately, the gift is in knowing. Once we know, we have the chance to improve. Sometimes it's something as simple as making sure we take a few deep breaths after a frustrating commute so we shake it off before talking to the team so they don't think we are mad at them. People pick up on our nonverbal cues, which may have nothing to do with what we are saying, and when we are out of synch...body language trumps words.

Feedback comes in two distinct forms: positive and negative, each with its unique impact and purpose. Positive feedback serves to commend and reinforce commendable performance, behavior, or outcomes. It boosts self-esteem, confidence, and motivation by validating successes, encouraging repeated excellence, and nurturing engagement. Moreover, it strengthens relationships through expressions of gratitude and appreciation, fostering collaboration. Conversely, negative feedback addresses deficiencies in performance, behavior, or results. It challenges assumptions, stimulates growth by pinpointing areas for improvement, and offers guidance for enhancement.

The sources of feedback in business coaching are as diverse as the skills they aim to develop. It's not just the supervisor's voice that matters; colleagues, clients, and even personal reflections contribute to this multifaceted input. Each source brings a unique perspective, enriching the coaching experience. While a supervisor provides structured guidance, colleagues offer real-time insights into teamwork dynamics. Clients, on the other hand, reflect the impact of one's efforts on the end user. Personal reflections act as a mirror, helping individuals recognize patterns and tendencies. Embracing feedback from various sources ensures a holistic view, fostering a comprehensive and well-rounded approach to career development.

Feedback is critical for growth & development yet, it seems to give people the ‘ick’! Find it hard to ask for feedback? Frame it as asking for advice. After all, if you want to get better at something, what better than asking someone who is already doing it well. People tend to be more forthcoming with ‘advice’ than feedback so it’s an easier approach. For example, I admire how confident you are presenting in front of groups of people and this is an area I would like to develop. Knowing me, what would be your best piece of advice around presenting. Giving feedback framework 1 - Observation - what you observed (facts no emotions). 2 - Impact - what was the impact resulting from what you observed. 3 - Action - what action/next steps

A powerful way to balance and strengthen your feedback muscle is by both giving and receiving feedback. When you give and receive feedback you can experience and empathize with the person who is on the other end. It helps you to experience the challenges and what comes up from both sides of the feedback process.

Leaders who ask for feedback, accept it graciously, and act on it gain an immense amount of trust from their teams. It also makes it easier for the leader to help their staff grow and advance in their careers because they've modeled that approach.

Maximizing the benefits of feedback involves a set of best practices. First, actively seek feedback from diverse sources and on various facets of your work and career, fostering continuous improvement. When receiving feedback, maintain an open and respectful attitude, avoiding defensiveness or emotional reactions. Listen attentively, ask for clarification, and ensure you grasp the feedback's nuances. Act on the feedback constructively and promptly, avoiding dismissal or neglect. Reflect on the feedback, extract key insights, and translate them into actionable steps for improvement in your work and career strategy. Embracing these practices transforms feedback into a valuable tool for personal and professional growth.

Blindly acting on all feedback could have you running in circles. Not all feedback carries the same weight and it's not always fully accurate or relevant to where you want to go. That's why it's important to get it from multiple sources, reflect on it, and make informed decisions on what to take action on.

It's tough to hear negative feedback about your role performance. We are so convinced the only way is up and we have to succeed in our role to get a promotion, but up is not always the best choice. If someone gives you feedback that you don't fit in a role or need to change the way you work, then revisit your skills and what you actually enjoy and explore other options that might be available within the organisation. If you are promoted in a role you never enjoyed in the first place, you will be trapped in the ladder and wonder 20 years later how you got there!

Making the feedback loop part of everyday life takes a lot of the stress out of it (on both sides) and makes it easier to make real time adjustments. When giving feedback, sandwiching negative feedback between to positive pieces makes the negative one easier to take. Helping people understand the why behind your feedback can also help people learn and grow. I also keep a forward focus and talk about what we can do in the future since we can't change what already happened. That also helps eliminate blame game conversations.

Providing regular, meaningful, and honest feedback is a core and critical responsibility of every leader. Ignoring a problem or telling someone they are doing well when they are not is doing them a great disservice.