Using Feedforward to Get Feedback

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The late Norman Vincent Peale once made the critical observation that “the trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.”  This can easily happen in leadership because the higher you go, the less likely you are to get honest feedback.  Getting honest feedback can be very challenging.  Yet if we want to improve our leadership behaviors, we need this feedback.  In an excellent new leadership book Leadership Step by Step, author Joshua Spodek presents the Feedforward Method developed by his mentor Marshall Goldsmith.  Using this method, you choose a specific behavior that you would like to improve.  Let’s use more effective listening as an example.  Perhaps as a leader, you are quick to jump to give advice without letting your staff reach their own conclusions thus preventing their growth.

Feedforward Method

1. Identify a behavior that you want to improve –  Our example is listening without immediately jumping to conclusions or advice.
2. Identify a person (accountability partner) who can help you, is a good listener and is around enough to observe your behavior.
3. Say to this person – I would like to improve my listening skills.  You have watched others who are better at this than I am.  When you watch me in conversation with my staff, I wonder if you could give me two or three pieces of advice that could help me to improve.  You are asking for advice – not an evaluation of your behavior or judgment.
4. Write the advice down.  Ask clarifying questions but don’t evaluate the advice.
5. Say – thank you – nothing else.
6. Ask for Accountability in the future

Marshall Goldsmith has used this method to help hundreds of coaching clients.  The beauty of Feedforward is it takes all the sting and sensitivity out of feedback because you are asking for advice.  He recommends though that the script be followed exactly.  If you use this method 5-10x with different people who observe your behavior, you will get very valuable information and it will become part of your leadership toolbox.  When you ask people for advice, they will feel like an expert and will be flattered.  They will want to give you their best advice.  Asking for accountability in the future takes the advice to the next step – and that is acting on it.

Read to Lead

Spodek, J. (2017).  Leadership Step by Step: Become the Person Others Want to Follow.  New York: Amacon Books

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