Did you know that one of my absolute favorite parts of our Activate program is getting to actually practice the concepts we teach? While it’s great to have management insight in your back pocket, it’s a completely different experience to actually put it to work.

A reminder of this surfaced when one of our Activate members had the opportunity to practice having feedback conversations during a recent coaching call.  After receiving notes from Leadology’s founder and coach Carrie on conversational aspects such as word choice and tone, participating managers were able to bring these teachings back to the office with zero stress or self-doubt about having the real conversation. 

Facilitating formative feedback conversations is not only vital to personal and professional development, but also maintaining authentic and supportive relationships in the workplace.

Fortunately, a few small changes here and there can go a long way. 

That’s why we’re particularly excited to pass along three small tweaks you can make right now to change the impact of your next feedback conversation: 

1. Convey your positive intention 
   Above all, it’s important to be able to communicate that whenever you offer feedback to someone on your team, it’s because you have high expectations of them, know they’re capable of great things, and want to set them up for success. By really narrowing in on what you want to achieve by the end of a feedback conversation, you can approach these interactions with employees with more compassion and authenticity. 
   

2. Use neutral language  
   As workplace leaders, one of the best ways we can productively approach giving feedback is by opting for observational language. As opposed to labeling– and to some extent, passing judgment on– a concerning behavior, try naming it in a completely neutral way. For example, say someone interrupted another team member during a team meeting. 

   Instead of saying, “What’s going on with you? I noticed you interrupted xyz in this morning’s meeting. That was so rude,” try simply stating “You spoke over xyz in the team meeting,” with complete neutrality. From here, let compassion and curiosity lead an honest conversation that allows you to test your own assumptions about what’s going on. 
   

3. Leave accountability in their hands
   Don’t be afraid to ask your employee how they see the situation. With this approach, you’re able to put accountability back into the hands of the individual, versus feeling like you need to constantly be coming up with solutions all on your own. 

Add this blog post to your reading list for more of Leadology’s immediately actionable tips: Employee Experience: 3 Tips for Offering Equitable Recognition to Your Team

Feedback conversations don’t need to be difficult

Even from a manager’s perspective, any feedback conversation can feel quite daunting. But with just a handful of small tweaks– as well as a lot of intention, honesty, and compassion– these discussions can transform your team’s potential for growth. 

So much of this work starts with a solid foundation of effective communication and emotional intelligence skills, tools that countless workplace leaders have already gleaned from professional development resources like Activate.

In the past few years, managers worldwide have reimagined the benefit of their feedback conversations by integrating some small yet powerful changes. In turn, they’ve watched their stress melt away as they have more purposeful conversations with their teams! 

Ready to level up you or your team’s communication skills? Schedule a call with us to learn more about how Activate is equipping leaders with the tools they need to change the way they engage in employee development.