In this era, we constantly work with our minds. Gone are the days of labor-intensive jobs, now we have robots to do all of it. But amidst all of this mental overwork, it becomes intensely difficult to make space for receiving and utilizing feedback effectively. We are so engrossed in moving from one task to another that pausing to reflect on whether our teammates think what we’re doing right or wrong just fades into the background.
Moreover, the current times make it even more challenging to pass effective feedback without other individuals taking it personally or getting hurt. That is the reason why I find it important for us to detach ourselves from our work whenever we are taking feedback on it. It is important for us to know that the person is evaluating the task at hand and not judging us or our capabilities as a person.
Another strategy we can utilize to improve how we take feedback is to constantly ask clarifying questions. Instead of assuming what the other individual is saying, we should make sure that we understand what they are truly intending to say.