Feedback has become the f-word of the working world. Many cringe when they hear the word because they know what's coming - criticism, unfairness or lip-service. What we crave is genuine and beneficial feedback. Recognition is an example of this.



Have you ever played the children's game 'Hunt The Thimble'? This is where a thimble is hidden in a room and the seeker is guided by calls of 'warmer' or 'colder' as they approach or move away from the target. Sometimes things get 'very hot' or 'freezing'!

The fun comes less in locating the thimble - after all you can't sell it, wear it or eat it - and more in the feedback itself. The real engagement is engendered by the guiding shouts. As seeker, you know you are involved and what you can do next.

At work we want to know we are making a difference. We don't like to see our efforts apparently disappearing into the ether. And we only know we are making a difference by getting feedback.

So how can we get the recognition we want?

The key is to increase the level of feedback you get. Genuine feedback is delivered in a way that 'feeds forward' so we learn from our experience and modify our actions as appropriate. As you get more feedback of this quality, some of it will be the recognition you want and the rest will be useful in other ways.

Here are 3 steps you can take:

1. Create a climate of feedback. While we can't change the culture single-handed, we can make it quite clear that personally we invite feedback. As part of your preparation in doing something, you can ask someone to supply feedback.

Suppose you are delivering a presentation in the near future. Ask a member of the audience beforehand to give you feedback. This works much better if you ask for it in specific areas - eg. 'first impressions, the attention of the audience is held and how the questions at the end are answered'.

Alternatively you could ask for feedback after you have completed a task. Here the giver is not pre-warned so the coverage of the areas you are particularly interested in may be more partial.

2. Get feedback from a wide range of sources. Frequently people are frustrated because the feedback from their boss is inadequate or missing (Implementing step 1 will inevitably influence this situation but in the final analysis you can't force someone to give feedback). So open up and tune in to feedback from less obvious sources - colleagues, customers, suppliers, affiliates, visitors, recruits and so on. What difference are you making here?

3. Experiment with new approaches and attitudes. When something is not working very well, so we are not getting the feedback we want, it is tempting to redouble our efforts and do the same thing again but harder. This is especially true with recognition. When getting in early and leaving late doesn't get it, we come in even earlier and leave even later!

We don't need to see feedback as a threat. We can influence both its source and quality to get more of the recognition we want.