It is the perf season at work. We’ve been reviewing our own and each other’s job performance. The reviews will feed into managers’ assessment of our performance which in turns affects whether we will get a raise or a promotion.
I struggled a bit with writing the reviews. I realized I haven’t been giving as much feedback as I should have been and now I’ve got a backlog and the perf review is an awkward place to bring up new feedback. Praise is fine, but it’s not fun to get surprise negative feedback during the perf review. It’d be better to receive it directly from the other person when it’s fresh.
I talked with a few friends about how to get better at giving feedback. It would be much easier to do if there was a culture of feedback where it was normal and safe to share feedback. But how to foster such culture?
The best advice I got was to start by soliciting feedback yourself. It builds the relationship and lays the groundwork for also giving it.
It’s also apple season
The Finnish word for apple crumble is omenahyve, literally “apple virtue”. Considering how delicious it is, it might as well be apple vice.
Photo: A rock I saw in at the Kauhala crag in Kirkkonummi.