Tag Archives: leadership

Get comfortable with giving feedback

Skill development No Comments

My colleague Jo Fairweather has written this post on how to give effective feedback.  Giving feedback is an important part of being a good colleague or line manager, and this post will also help you to reflect on what you want when you are asking others to give you feedback on your work.

We regularly give feedback in our lives. It could be writing a review on TripAdvisor, commenting on a colleague’s email or giving feedback on someone’s essay.

Considering your approach to giving feedback can help make you and the person who receives feedback feel more comfortable.

Reflect on your current approach to giving feedback. Are you on target, go in with a sledgehammer or avoid the issue for fear of upsetting the individual? The purpose of providing feedback is for the recipient to benefit from that new knowledge. Giving feedback is not about trying to change that person, be judgemental, or make them like you. Being aware of your natural response can help you analyse how you view feedback.

Be clear on what the feedback relates to. Be descriptive not interpretative. Feedback is like holding up a mirror to someone else. Try to keep personal opinions and concerns out of the message. Emphasise the “what” and “how” rather than the “why.”

Present a balanced view. Pay attention to giving both positive and negative feedback. Most people listen out for and remember negative feedback received first so a good balance is important.

Put yourself in the other person’s place. Assess the readiness of the other person to make use of what you say. Pick your time and place. Consider if the feedback will be given face to face. Receiving feedback via text, email, or phone can affect the tone and lead to misinterpretation.

Be specific rather than general. Stick to concrete examples you have noticed and be aware of getting side tracked by unrelated matters. For example, if you are being asked to comment on the tone of an email don’t start commenting on the spelling too.

Be direct and courageous. You may feel uncomfortable saying something unpleasant to the person. Remember your intention is to be helpful. Keeping information from the person can be more harmful than telling them.

Say your information and let it go. It is up to the person what they do with your feedback, don’t be offended if they don’t take it.

By following the above principles you will become more comfortable in giving feedback.

Leadership skills … lessons from business leaders.

Leadership Skill development Uncategorized No Comments

Leadership skills are a key requirement for many professional careers … but what makes a good leader?

I came across an interesting article “10 leadership lessons from the world’s biggest business leaders” by Raj Tulsiani,  in the journal Recruitment Grapevine (December 2015).  Raj cites adaptation as the key to success, along with learning from your peers and those who have been there and done it already.  With this in mind he presents one piece of advice from 10 global business leaders. A summary of this advice follows below:

  1. Look at the big picture:  Think deeper and rather than focussing on the day-to-day issues look at the bigger picture. (Bill Gates, co-founder and former CEO Microsoft)
  2. Be passionate:  If you do something you are passionate about, you are naturally going to succeed. (Mary Barra, CEO General Motors)
  3.  Create valuable networks:  Surround yourself with only positive people who are going to lift you higher. (Oprah Wimfrey,  talk show host and business woman)
  4. Find Focus:  Focus on consumers and professionals. (Steve Jobs, co-founder and former CEO Apple)
  5. Hire Smart: You don’t need another you! Creating a diverse team with people from different backgrounds can give you  a well-rounded approach when it comes to decision making. (Claire Watts, CEO QVC)
  6. Inspire your staff:  Leadership is the ability to inspire others. (Jeff Weine, CEO LinkedIn). Jeff is said to inspire his staff by encouraging them to take time out from their work everyday just to think!
  7. Listen: Lead by listening – to be a good leader you have to be a great listener.(Sir Richard Branson, founder and CEO Virgin)
  8. Never give up:  Even when the going gets really tough – never give up! (Anne Mulcahy former CEO Xerox)
  9. Be compassionate:  Show you care. If your team think you don’t care, it can be a rocky road. (John Shilifske, CEO Northwestern Mutual)
  10. Embrace change: It can be hard for business to keep up with the scale of changing products and services … but what’s dangerous is not to evolve. (Jeff Bezos, CEO Amazon)

The original article by Raj Tulsiani, CEO and co-founder of Green Park Interim and  Executive Search, can be found on Recruitment Grapevine, December 2015, p40/41, via the following link:  Recruitment Grapevine