Feedback Vs. Feedforward

Inspired by an infographic created by @innerdrive.co.uk.

Do you give feedback or feedforward?

We all get feedback in our lives, it's universal in the working environment - critiques, appraisals and meeting. We can't escape it...

Feedback isn't always good or constructive. In a paper published by the American Psychological Association states:
"38% of feedback interventions actually do more harm than good."

Many of use have been using bad habits or poor techniques, as Inner Peace says in their article:
"it's not the how, but the what that matters".

The old paradigm of The critique Sandwich (praise...feedback...praise), doesn't work any more, people see through it and just focus on the bad.

Feedback focuses on the past. For learning and growth to take place, we must focus on the future.

Feedback does have a place, highlight errors and insights for greater self-awareness/reflection.

This focus on the outcome can lead to the feedback receiver feeling attacked or belittled.

It's time to switch to feedforward!

Feedforward focuses on the future. How to get better, what to do next and suggestion on a path to get there.

The focus is on the process and behaviours - not just the outcomes or current situations. It's more of a collaboration, a 2 way conversation.

Asking questions like "what can we do to improve this?" or "what will we do differently next time?".
Shift the focus from the past to the future.

By putting the emphasis on the future - this avoids the awkward defensive conversations and arguing that bad feedback sessions devolve into.

The goal of good feedback is always the same - to give a clear and concise understanding of what you need to get better. To feedforward, is to lay the path towards better times in the future.

What's your favourite feedback technique?
Let me know in the comments below.

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