Let’s be clear. I’m no bodybuilder. I go to the gym a couple of times a week to keep myself fit and energetic. But you don’t need to be a gym rat or a personal trainer to notice that some people work out properly and effectively while others are headed straight for a lifetime of chiropractic care.
What is the difference between those making all the right moves and those who are simply wasting their time? More often than not, the most effective people have previously sought out assistance in the form of honest and objective feedback. Am I doing this right? How’s my form? What can I do to be more effective? What needs to change?
The same principle that applies to performance at the gym also applies at work and in your personal life. Objective feedback is an essential component in the pursuit of optimal performance. How can we possibly maximize our impact, hone our communication skills, increase our levels of influence without a clear and honest picture of how we appear to others?
To get the input you need for peak performance, try the following strategies:
Ask. Seek the feedback of those whom you know and trust. Don’t just look to your supporters. Without honest feedback from your critics, you’re just not getting the full picture.
Look for patterns. Are there themes or patterns that emerge in the feedback you’re receiving? Are you getting similar information from more than one source? If so, there’s probably some truth in what you’re hearing.
Keep making the right moves. Where things are going well, keep up the good work. Continually build upon your strengths. After all, if it ain’t broke…
Make necessary changes. Experiment with modifying ineffective behaviors. Eliminate self-destructive actions. You may have been shooting yourself in the foot without even realizing it. Now you can stop.
Ask again. Touch base with your feedback network to see how you’re doing. What have they noticed? Are your new behaviors working? Can you do more?
Remember that just getting to the gym isn’t enough. To continually improve your performance, to be as successful as you want to be, you’ve got to periodically monitor and modify your actions. So go ahead and ask the question, “Hey, how am I doing?” You may just be surprised by the answer.
To learn more about this author, visit Liz Bywater's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Related Articles |
|
 Improve Your Performance with Objective Feedback (AKA: Give it to Me Straight)
|
| |
Objective feedback is an essential component in the pursuit of optimal performance. How can we possibly maximize our impact, hone our communication skills, increase our levels of influence without a clear and honest...
|
|
Employee Success 7 Ways Feedback Works
|
| |
Feedback to your people works if you get it right. They develop; your business grows and everyone's a winner.
Now, here's the good news! In this article are 7 reasons
to build 'Feedback' into your skillset.
|
|
Now You Can Have Super Motivated Staff with these 8 Proven Tips
|
| |
"Great job - well done..." or "You need to improve..."Which one would you rather feedback on?Giving honest feedback is one of the hardest skills to master...
|
|
The Sales Managers´s Toolkit; Role-playing
|
| |
Role-playing, whether it is impromptu or a planned part of a sales meeting, is one of the most effective tools a sales manager has to improve sales performance. You can reorganize territories, re-assign accounts, ra...
|
|
10 Tips for Giving Effective Feedback
|
| |
Giving feedback is a critically important part of the communication process within the workplace. Most people find it easy to offer positive comments, but avoid giving negative feedback because they fear confrontati...
|
|
|
Liz Bywater
(Visit Liz's Website)
Liz Bywater, PhD, is president of Bywater
Consulting Group, LLC, an organizational
consulting firm in the Philadelphia area.
Dr. Bywater helps her clients dramatically
improve individual, group, and
organizational performance... resulting in
enhanced job satisfaction, maximized
productivity, and heightened profitability
for the organization.
Dr. Bywater is a specialist in human
behavior and behavioral change. She
brings her sophisticated understanding of
people, relationships, and communication
to the corporate environment to help her
clients effect meaningful and lasting
improvements in job effectiveness. Dr.
Bywater writes and speaks on a variety of
workplace topics, including the power of
collaboration, effective workplace
communication, and outstanding leadership.
She has been published and quoted in such
publications as the NY Times and the
International Herald Tribune.
Dr. Bywater earned her PhD at the Derner
Institute of Advanced Psychological
Studies. She earned her AB at Cornell
University, where she graduated Phi Beta
Kappa and Cum Laude with Distinction.
|
|
 |
|
Liz Bywater's
Complete
List Of
Small-Business-Consulting
Articles
|
|
If you enjoyed this article, get Liz Bywater's Complete List of Small-Business-Consulting Articles For FREE!
|
|
|
|
