Feedback

Feedback is important. I realize that is a brief statement but it IS something that you need to be successful. If you want nothing but good feedback and praise, ask your mother what she thinks. She will always be supportive and you may need that initially. To get the proper feedback on your job or life you need the feedback of individuals you respect. You do not necessarily have to like the person but you do need to respect their opinions. When in sales if you are not getting the business out of a potential customer ask the customer why. It could be a myriad of things. Have them pinpoint their exact reasoning as objectively as possible. Use that information to make yourself better in your field. This applies not just in sales but as employees or in constructing a building. You should not be insulted by their response. Use their information as a tool to do better in the future with them or with future customers. It is not meant to change who you are as a person but to let you learn how to deal with different types of people. You will not click with everyone nor should you expect to.

You can also get feedback from customers that you are doing well with. They will give you information on how you can do even better with them. If they already like you then you will get new ideas on what you can do better. People that like you want to see you be more successful.

As an employee, there is nothing better than an evaluation. It should be done on a consistent basis. How often have you been somewhere when you don't know how you stack up in the company in which you are employed? You can be fired for some reason that has never been addressed because of the lack of an evaluation. It happens, and has happened to me. I prefer for my employer to let me know how I am doing. Sometimes I fall short of goals or have some annoying habit that may need to be broken. That is not good in the company environment and feedback from the evaluation is the way to address it. If it is not done consistently or at all then ask your supervisor to let you know how you are doing and to tell you what you can do better.

If you have just finished a job, a building, etc., then ask the customer how you did. Find out the things that could have been done better and what was done well. It is important that they feel like they are a part of your process. If you think the job went poorly, they may think it went well. They may point out all of the things you did good or point out all of the flaws. Either way you are getting a source of feedback that will help you improve future business.

Feedback is not just for job related issues either. It is can also be used in your own personal life. Maybe you have a hobby that you enjoy. Find others that enjoy the same thing. Learn from them, you may even be able to help them in the process. Get their input and feedback on the things you have done well and not so well. I am sure that they will not see the exact same flaws that you see but will give new insight to what you have done. Your glaring mistakes that stand out so well to you may be a non issue to them.

The bottom line is that feedback from others is a good source of information for you to improve what you are doing and is important for your growth in your business or in your personal life.