How feedback is given in coaching and psychological intervention

How to differentiate between feedback given in coaching and negative criticism?

From a coaching perspective, it is feedback and not criticism if when giving an opinion about another person we follow certain guidelines. It is feedback if the exchange is direct, interpersonal and is done with the intention of helping you learn and grow.. Therefore, giving an opinion on how we perceive the performance and impact of a person to improve their development is not criticizing, it is giving feedback.

Moreover, to go from criticism to feedback, the comment must be argued, clear, constructive, timely and must look to the future. For example, it would not be feedback to say: "Let's see if your team gets its act together, because this is not the way to get the job done". And it would be feedback to say: "Let's talk about what might be happening in your team...".

Feedback, a tool for development

Feedback helps to leverage strengths and to identify and improve our weaknesses, enabling development.enabling development. When positive, it has a powerful impact on engagement. "Someone else's opinion of how we act pushes us, as it has a positive impact on our future actions, helping us to always improve," explain the EEC coaches who teach this tool in their coaching training and in their interventions in companies.

Moreover, in the experts' opinion, negative feedback does not exist. "Feedback is always positive because it always pushes us forward".

In this sense, sharing what we think about the performance of others is a responsibility.. From EEC, they understand "the action of giving feedback as an obligation, since it is the only way we have to develop ourselves and to give something to the other person that will help him or her to grow".

It is bidirectional

The feedback phenomenon goes in two directions. Don't lose sight of the fact that it is in your hand to know how your own performance is perceived and the impact you are generating.. If you don't do this, you will be the last person to know about your mistakes. "Feedback is asking others to lend us their eyes to see things we are not seeing," they clarify at EEC.

4 keys to avoid putting your foot in your mouth

The experts at Escuela Europea de Coaching define four aspects to keep in mind in order to give and receive feedback properly. The key is to understand feedback as a gift.

1. Feedback is always an opinion about a fact.

To give and receive feedback it is necessary to differentiate between opinions and facts.

2. Do not keep valuable information to yourself.

If we do not give feedback we keep something that can be useful for someone else to grow.

3. It is necessary to ask for feedback

If we don't ask for feedback we miss out on something that can help us to help us to grow.

4. Appreciate the opportunity to get that feedback

Feedback is a privilege at our disposal as a tool to grow and help others grow.

Haters gonna hate

Finally, remember that criticism serves to criticize and feedback serves to improve.. It's not the same to say you're doing something stupid as it is to say, "you're dumb".

"Feedback is not what the other person is, not even what the other person does, it is what happens to me with what the other person has done", conclude the trainers of Escuela Europea de Coaching. "To talk about feedback is to put the person first and to talk about vulnerability, connection, cooperation and the need not to insist on being right".