Dear Coach,
I read your column about Marshall Goldsmith’s concept of feedforward and wondered if you had any tips or suggestions for leaders who want to convert feedback into feedforward?
Best,
Sandra
Dear Sandra,
Great question!
Converting feedback into feedforward takes practice. Virtually all of us have long been immersed in giving and receiving feedback so it does take effort to convert the one into the other. Yet it can be done.
Here’s my number one tip. Ask yourself, “What is the ‘Why’ behind the ‘What’?”
The “What” is your reaction to what happened.
– “The report was good, but it lacked a couple of things that were needed.”
– “You were 15 minutes late to the meeting.”
– “You lost your temper and offended the customer.”
In circumstances such as these, if you’re the leader, it’s easy to give feedback. So how would you convert it into feedforward? You’d start with the Why – the big picture connection, the underlying purpose or objective. You’d identify why the behavior manners and why changed behavior would matter.
– Instead of “but”, it’s “I liked your report and think if you include these two topics, it will be even more helpful in preparing me for my upcoming board meeting.”
– Instead of “you’re late”, it’s “For our project team be successful, I think it’s essential that everyone commits to being on time for our meetings.”
– Instead of “you offended”, it’s “To be successful in Customer Service, it’s critical that our reps keep cool heads when dealing with difficult customers.”
It can be okay to begin with feedback so long as you quickly pivot into feedforward and remain there. Practice! Practice! Practice!
Sandra, I hope you find this helpful.
Best,
Jathan
Jathan Janove is a Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching Master Coach and Practice Leader. You can learn more about him here. If you have a question you’d like him to address, please email us at AsktheCoach@mgscc.net.
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