Feedback Strategies

Five Reasons to Stop Saying "Good Job!" by Alfie Kohn

This is an interesting article for sure and a lot of it does resonate with me personally; I feel we're setting a tone for kids and because of this we grow up with an incessant need to please others. When we're going through a critical process, the focus of input shouldn't be reward or attack - it should be constructive insight. The goal of editing is improving the body of work, which oftentimes requires the tearing down and altering of what's written, which can't be done if we're so focused on congratulatory writing.



Why Do So Many Managers Avoid Giving Praise? by Jack Zenker and Joseph Folkman

It's reassuring to me to see that 52% of workers polled rated their managers as effective when they gave negative and positive feedback. I'm my time spent working as an economic researcher or as a bicycle mechanic I've dealt with numerous types of managers, and I feel I've learned more from negative feedback than positive. One of my first managers gave no positive feedback and gave an absurd amount of negative feedback (believe it or not I was a good mechanic so this criticism wasn't needed) and the end result of this was that his comments were ultimately ignored because we all knew he wasn't saying anything necessary. The ability of a manager to give criticism and balance this with affirmation is crucial; you can't constantly belittle employees and expect good work, nor can you shower them with congratulations and expect them to improve.



Photo Credit:
Negative Feedback Loop | Source

Feedback Thoughts

Seven Ways to Crush Self-Doubt in Creative Work - John Spencer

This article gives some serious insight into the issue of self-doubt, and the ease with which it can enter into one's life. For me personally, I've most felt self-doubt in my time in endurance sports, first with swimming and the minimalism of variance between winning and losing. Then, with Triathlon where there's no way to fake a race; you're perpetually suffering and the winner is the one who can cope with this suffering the most effectively. The main two takeaways for me are 1. "Don't Compare Yourself to Others" and 2. "Abandon Perfectionism". In both of the aforementioned parts of my life these two traits can be horribly present; in swimming you're forced to compare yourself with others, because you're adjacent them and wearing essentially nothing - it's all very bare. In Triathlon, everyone is shoulder to shoulder, but everyone has strengths and weaknesses, and the ability to compartmentalize is essential. Further, if you go into any race expecting perfection, you'll lose. The ability to understand imperfection isn't an issue is a skill that can benefit everyone in all walks of life, other than surgery.


A Simple 5-Second Habit to Rewire Your Harshly Self-Critical Brain - Joel Almeida

I had a very hard time with this article; I've never been a fan of self-congratulation. I was certainly raised as a pessimist, and the thought of telling myself all is well and I'm fine after I've dropped the ball is still quite terrifying to me. I feel as though that would bring about stagnation and lethargy. I understand that I'm likely wrong and on one end of the spectrum, but I believe the "REBS" system outline within this article is equally wrong and exists on the other end of the spectrum. While we shouldn't be self-loathing, we also shouldn't pat ourselves on the back when we've made a mistake.





Photo Credit:
Fight Back Feelings of Self-Doubt|flickr|Paul Sableman