Turns & Exists

The Story of Feedback

Remember driving home from work or taking a long trip to your parent's home for chistmas? Thoughts and plans jumping in the mind, imagination woven together with excitement. And, the surge of emotion causing impatience to get there. Only if you had a magic wand to cut the time by hours.

But reality is that there are turns and exists. They stand on every corner like a bully, smirking at you. They demand that you slow down. They seem to break the momentum. They force you to bring your speed down from 80 to 45. It's almost like they love the sound of engine change from a smooth yet forceful wind to a gravely irritated roar - sort of a complaint made under one's breath.

And as an obedient child, you obey!

Organizational life and life in general is like. It demands that we break the rythm, and slow down. While slowing down can make one feel like they are getting late to get to their destination, they are actually getting closer to it. Because if they don't, they will either end up in the wrong destination or someone will say - "it's better late than never" when thinking of them.

Giving & receiving feedback can feel like that. It makes one to slow down. Because the potential for damage is high, slowing down for it is the wisest option.

Slowing down helps you make calculated, informed decisions.

On the surface it looks like feedback is slowing things down and breaking the momentum but it is actually helping the giver and the receiver reach the destination. Many times, leaders do not slow down when taking an exit and that is scary.

The humdrum of the organizational life can deafen and blind the leaders to the necessity of taking a pause. When leaders do not pause and prepare their feedback in pursuit of chasing organizational goals, they end up hurting the cause. They can catch people off-guard which makes feedback feel like the leader dropped a blazing hot golden liquid in their laps.

While the molten gold is rich shiny and expensive, it would have been appreciated by the receiver of the feedback if the liquid gold was given a shape and cooled off a bit before dropped in their lap.

So, the next time you give feedback as a leader please hit the pause button. Slow down and prepare the feedback before delivering it.

What to do while you wait? Preparation. It only takes minutes. Initially, it will seem like work but with time, it will be seemeless.

Check my article - A Well-Cooked Feedback