[Language help] What are words you can use to start a critique?

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Prompt: sometimes, teammates ask for feedback, but starting off a critique can be hard. How might you begin?

Please share the language you use in these situations. Or, upvote the responses you like.

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Series note: communication is the foundation of connection with teammates. The more options we have at our disposal, the better chance we have of communicating our needs. What better place to crowdsource ideas than from the Atlassian Community?

[Patrícia Fortunato Montenegro · Accepted solution]

Great question! Our culture breaths are constructive. We're very open to it, feedback being, whether good or not, to improve our performance and results. So, I like to come up with the context of the situation, talk directly about my feedback about what was wrong or right, and then suggest reviewing our procedure. Because if it failed, it wasn't clear for my teammate, or the process could be more anchored. And finally, together, we'll find the best fit to deal with and fix the best path to move forward. Most of the time, it's a triumphant conversation when I exchange some feedback. And I always do my best to make everything clear without any doubts or concerns for both sides.

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Comprehensive. One of the points I'm picking up is that thoroughness is important. Context, the situation itself, + the critique. Which is to also say that we're not just talking about the feedback itself when having a conversation about a critique. Good one to remember.

[Jimmy Seddon · Accepted solution]

Ohh I like this prompt.  Much like @Joseph Chung Yin pointed out already, when I have been approached by a teammate for feedback, there is usually an understanding in place already that anything said is not meant as a personal attack but an opportunity to do and be better.

Ironically, or maybe un-ironically, I have less negative feedback for those that ask as they are always striving to be better, whereas those who don't ask usually have more room for improvement.

Now, before you ask @Christine P. Dela Rosa, in "those" situations, I like to lead that conversation pointing out something they are doing very well before offering a suggestion on where they can improve.  It's not always successful but I always feel better for having made an attempt to help them improve.

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Love that you knew the question I had in my head as I began to read your response, @Jimmy Seddon lolol.

And I totally hear that leading with a positive note is not always successful if it's mixed messages. But I Think that leading with a positive note might start both parties off from a place of shared understanding. Sometimes, starting from the same place simply helps get the two parties open to moving towards whatever else is said afterward. So, I'm for it, too!

[Carlos Garcia Navarro · Accepted solution]

Hi @Christine P. Dela Rosa ,

When sharing constructive feedback I like to be specific and to make it about a situation. If we know each other well, and there is trust, then it's a little bit easier, as the recipient of the feedback may know that there is positive intention and not ill-intentioned.  I normally like to start announcing the feedback, and asking for permission, e.g. "I wanted to give you some feedback, if you'd like to hear it." I describe the situation "when you gave the presentation of project A yesterday", and then present the issue, e.g. "there was a lot of information in the slides and this made it difficult to understand the action items that were urgent." Finally I offer advice: " maybe next time it would be more effective to present the current risks and immediate actions."

In some cultures, it's also expected to start with some positive feedback, although I found that in some cases, this may take the focus from the constructive feedback.

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Asking if they're okay with receiving some or simply stating that you're going to give some, is an obvious way to prepare people to be in the right mindset for what they're about to hear. I don't know why I don't think of this as my default way to start!

[Mel Policicchio · Accepted solution]

Giving and receiving feedback can be a wildcard experience because everyone has unique preferences. Personally, I like to know in advance that my manager plans to pay special attention to my presentation/draft content/etc. and intends to give specific feedback on it. Hearing something like "I'm looking forward to your presentation for the team at our next meeting and seeing how you present the info" is a nice clue that this particular presentation is a bigger deal than some others.

Afterward, I like when managers start the conversation by asking me how I think I did. We're our own worst critics and often the feedback I have for myself is pretty aligned with the feedback they have for me. This also takes some of the heat off my manager; they're not the ones saying I talk too fast, they're simply reinforcing what I already know. This also helps steer the conversation  away from just feedback ("you need to speak slower during a presentation") to solutions ("I agree with you that you're speaking a little fast, one thing I like to do is take a deliberate breath between each bullet on the slide")

For me, the most important part of the feedback conversation is the solution. I'm generally already aware of my own faults, so hearing them restated isn't particularly helpful. Hearing potential solutions, tips, or opportunities for education is exponentially more helpful, and may require a little more preparation on the managers' part! But in that case, it's quality over quantity. I'd rather spend half an hour discussing how I can improve my speaking during a presentation than half than hour hearing how I speak too quickly, my slides are too busy, and presentation content was missing key elements. 

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Wow - so many suggestions, @Mel Policicchio !

Giving a heads up that you're going to give a critique REALLY prepares someone. I've never intentionally done that before so I'll give it a try and see how it fares. And then, starting the actual critique by inquiring how the other person feels, in a way, models that the critique is to be two-way. I never thought about it that way before.

[Mel Policicchio]

It was a good prompt, @Christine P. Dela Rosa! I didn't realize how passionate I am about feedback until I started writing haha 

[Joseph Chung Yin · Accepted solution]

@Christine P. Dela Rosa -

In our team, everyone all understand this one common philosophy that all feedbacks are treated as constructive and not as negative attack.   As long as the feedbacks are factual based and not something just out of no where with nothing to back it up.

Team's learning will never stop and it is always a 2 ways street among the team members - to give/to receive.  An environment that fosters learning is a must for all of us.

Best, Joseph  

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

The "2-way street" note is interesting. I wonder if learning-based cultures like yours have designated times (like team spars) for back-and-forth feedback time. That way, it doesn't matter how you start because each party knows what's about to come.

[Darryl Lee · Accepted solution]

On our team, we usually ask ourselves to think it twice about the better wording before delivering to our peers but keep it succinct. Meanwhile, not just offer the critiques but always try to provide a suggestion at the same time, and always be keen to open for discussion regarding the topic.

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

The suggestions are what make change happen. Yeah!