Encouraging Positive Feedback

“What magic are you doing to get such great feedback from your reports?” was the question one of my engineering manager clients received from the leader 3 levels above him. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀: • His team loves him so much that they scored him very high in the employee survey. • He was the only manager in his group who scored positively in inclusive leadership and empowerment. • This made peers ask him: “How do you do it?”. • The news about his performance escalated to 3 levels above him — his VP heard about him and insisted on personally congratulating him. 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘀: 1. Push down ownership—and welcome failure:    He gives people more responsibility than they expect, then makes it safe to fail. That pushes folks to grow. 2. Make every voice heard:    In meetings, he calls on people by name and solicits their opinions and feedback. Feeling heard makes everyone lean in. 3. Share your own work openly:    He treats his workload and goals like everyone else’s—posting them in stand-up. That transparency builds trust: “We’re all rowing the boat together.”     Because of this, his team trusts him deeply and feels empowered to do their best work. Good management is not rocket science; it’s common sense, yet we make it more complicated than it needs to be. What leadership practice has made the biggest difference for your team? Share below! ♻️ Please repost if you found this useful

Giving feedback isn’t just about pointing out mistakes—it’s about empowering growth and creating a path for improvement. As leaders, mentors, or colleagues, we must remember that our words can either uplift or demoralize. Here’s my go-to approach for constructive feedback: ✅ Be Specific: Vague criticism helps no one. Focus on particular behaviors or outcomes. ✅ Use the SBI Model: Situation. Behavior. Impact. It keeps the conversation objective and solution-focused. ✅ Balance with Positivity: Acknowledge what’s working well before addressing areas of improvement. ✅ Feedforward: Let’s shift the narrative to what can be improved for future success, instead of lingering on past mistakes. Remember, the goal is to help others grow—not just to correct. When delivered effectively, feedback becomes a powerful tool for building trust, inspiring confidence, and driving real change. How do you approach giving feedback in your workplace? 💬 Let’s discuss! #Leadership #Feedback #ProfessionalGrowth #Coaching #Empowerment #LeadershipDevelopment

Negative feedback is not nearly as helpful as most people think. There’s a story often told about Tom Landry and the Dallas Cowboys in the 1970s. Landry would sit with players and show them film of their mistakes. That approach backfired. Players kept rehearsing their mistakes mentally. Their anxiety increased. So Landry changed the approach. He started showing highlights instead. He used positive reinforcement. He showed players what good looked like. It worked much better. The Cowboys went on to win the Super Bowl. I’ve seen the same thing in business. Most people don't need more reminders about what they did wrong. They already know. What helps is a clearer picture of what to repeat. As I explain in The Psychology of Leadership, managers should give on-the-spot positive reinforcement, especially when someone achieves a great outcome. Always be ready to say, “Yes. Do more of that.” That kind of feedback sticks.

Kindness is an underrated superpower.

It’s often mistaken for weakness or seen as something “extra” rather than essential. But when you show genuine kindness at work and in life - without expecting anything in return, you’re not just making your environment better, you’re actively transforming it and yourself. 
 Kindness fosters trust, collaboration, and positivity. People who feel valued and supported are naturally more engaged and motivated. They’re more likely to help others, share ideas, and contribute to a culture where everyone can thrive. 

And the beauty of it is, kindness doesn’t require you to be in a leadership position - it’s something you can offer no matter your role.
 Here’s how to bring kindness into your workplace in tangible ways: 1. Start with Small Acts: Hold the lift door for a colleague, offer to grab someone a coffee, or help a team member who’s struggling with a task. These small gestures create a positive ripple effect, making the workplace more collaborative and friendly.
 2. Acknowledge Others’ Efforts: Recognise when your colleagues are doing great work, especially when it might go unnoticed. A simple “well done” or “I appreciate your help” can boost morale significantly. When people feel appreciated, they’re more likely to engage with enthusiasm.
 3. Listen Attentively: In meetings or casual conversations, give people your full attention. Don’t just wait for your turn to speak. Active listening shows respect and makes others feel valued. It fosters deeper connections and opens the door to more meaningful collaboration.
 4. Be Patient with Mistakes: When someone makes a mistake, approach it with patience and understanding instead of frustration. We all have off days. Offering support rather than blame builds trust and helps your team learn and grow together.
 5. Offer Help Without Agenda: If you see a colleague overwhelmed or stuck, offer assistance without expecting a favour in return. Whether it’s staying late to help meet a deadline or simply offering advice, selfless support strengthens team bonds.
 6. Create a Safe Space for Feedback: Make it easy for colleagues to voice their opinions and ideas without fear of judgement. Encourage open dialogue and respond to feedback with kindness, even when it’s critical. This creates a culture of continuous improvement and trust.
 7. Celebrate Wins, Big or Small: Whether it’s completing a big project or overcoming a small challenge, celebrate the achievements of your team. Recognition keeps people motivated and connected to their work, reinforcing a positive and encouraging atmosphere.
 8. Be Kind to Yourself: It’s easy to be hard on yourself when things don’t go as planned. But self-compassion is key to maintaining balance. Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding you offer others, allowing room for growth and rest when needed. ♻️Adam Grant

What if the way we think about confidence is all wrong? And then, what if methods we think will boost kids’ confidence…  actually lowers it? When your kid says, “I'm the worst soccer player on my team,” or “I'm the only one in my camp group who can’t swim in the deep end!”... We all have the instinct to try to make our kids feel “better.” We want to say, “That can’t be true!” or “ but you’re amazing at swimming!” In no way am I saying that these comments “mess up” a child! And at the same time, I do think these comments reduce a child's confidence.  Here’s how I see it: Confidence isn't feeling good about yourself. Confidence is self trust. It’s the ability to feel at home with yourself at any given moment - especially the moments when things aren’t going your way. Ironically, a response like this would actually be the thing to build confidence. “I’m so glad you’re talking to me about this” or “Ugh sounds like a tricky day at camp. Tell me more.” After all, confidence doesn’t come from feeling like the best at something. Confidence comes from feeling like it’s OK to be you even when you’re not the best at something. And when we are able to tolerate our kids' difficult moments, they become able to tolerate these moments as well. That’s confidence. How does that play out in the workplace? It looks like rushing to fix instead of really listening. Reassuring instead of reflecting.  When a colleague says, “I’m struggling with this project,” or “I don’t think I’m good at this,” we often have the instinct to jump to, “You’re doing great!” or “Don’t be so hard on yourself!” But this doesn’t build their confidence. What would help it was actually a remarkably similar response to my example with a child. So try words like, “ I’m so glad you’re talking to me about this” or “Ugh. Sounds like a tricky project. Tell me more.”  I have a feeling this is a totally different way to think about confidence. Does it resonate? Do you feel like you built confidence through your successes or through your struggles?

Healthcare leaders can't build healthier cultures by focusing only on what is wrong. That was a key theme in our latest #Unfiltered conversation with Jonathan Fisher, MD. The problems in medicine are real. Burnout is real. Moral injury is real. Administrative overload is real. But if the only story clinicians hear is that everything is terrible, something important is lost: the meaning, purpose and pride that drew people into medicine in the first place. Jonathan said it well: “If our focus is only on the negatives… we are destined to fail.” Recognition is not fluff. Appreciation is not superficial. Positivity is not denial. Celebrating excellent care, strong teamwork and compassionate leadership is part of how culture changes for the better. Medicine needs more gratitude for the people who keep showing up. Watch the clip, and listen to the full conversation on Unfiltered, part of the Fixing Healthcare with Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr. Your turn: What positive aspects should healthcare leaders recognize more often? #HealthcareOnLinkedIn #HealthcareLeadership #PhysicianWellbeing #PhysicianBurnout #MedicalLeadership #HealthcareCulture #ClinicianWellbeing #FixingHealthcare

Everyone thinks blind spots are things other people have. That's actually the definition of one, so if you're waiting to notice yours on your own, you'll be waiting a long time. Here's what I actually have clients do instead. Think of the last piece of feedback that stung a little more than expected. Not the feedback you instantly agreed with, and not the feedback you dismissed outright. The stuff in between, where you felt a flicker of defensiveness before you'd even fully considered it. That sting is data. If it didn't apply to you at all, you wouldn't feel anything — you'd just think the person was wrong and move on. The fact that it landed somewhere means some part of you already suspected it was true. Second, ask the people around you a specific question. Not "Do I have any blind spots?" Ask, what do you find yourself not telling me? That's a completely different question, and people can actually answer it because you're not asking them to diagnose you. You're asking what they've quietly been holding back. Third, when you get an answer, don't respond in the moment. Say thank you, and go think about it later, alone. Respond right away, and you'll almost certainly defend yourself, even if you don't mean to, and that teaches people to stop telling you things. Blind spots don't stay hidden because people can't see them. They stay hidden because leaders make it expensive for anyone to point them out. What's the last piece of feedback that stung more than it should have, if it wasn't at least partly true? Lead what AI can't. #Leadership #ExecutiveCoaching #SelfAwareness

Can praising your children impact their mindset? Does it make them succeed or fail in the long run? Carol Dweck proved this in a study she conducted with 400 fifth graders. They gave the kids an easy IQ test and then praised them in two different ways. One group was praised for their intelligence: “You must be really smart!” The other group was praised for their effort: “You must have worked really hard!” They were given the chance to take a second test, and this happened: 67% of the kids praised for their intelligence chose an easier test to avoid failure. 92% of those praised for their effort chose a harder test, seeing it as a chance to learn and grow. This shows that praising intelligence can lead to a fixed mindset. Kids become afraid to take risks because they don’t want to lose their “smart” label. On the other hand, praising effort fosters a growth mindset. It encourages kids to embrace challenges and see mistakes as opportunities to improve. So basically, what you tell people and what you tell yourself matters. It’s important to praise the effort or point to lack of effort/preparation rather than labelling a person as a winner or loser. And it applies to what we tell ourselves when we succeed or fail. What affirmations do you tell yourself every morning? #GrowthMindset

“When a teacher believes in a child, that child starts to believe in themselves.” I’ve always believed that the greatest superpower a teacher has isn’t knowledge, or even skill, it’s belief. The belief that every child has greatness within them, waiting to be noticed, nurtured, and named. Back in the 1960s, psychologists Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson ran a study that changed the way we think about teaching. They told teachers that a few children in their class were about to have a huge leap in intelligence. The catch? Those children were chosen completely at random. But by the end of the year, those very children really had made remarkable progress. Why? Because their teachers believed they would. That’s called the Pygmalion effect, the idea that positive expectations lead to positive outcomes. But there’s a flip side too – the Golem effect, when low expectations quietly limit a child’s growth. Every interaction we have with our students is a mirror reflecting back to them who they think they are. The way we speak, smile, and respond tells them what we expect. And they rise (or shrink) to meet it. Here are four ways to bring the Pygmalion effect to life in your classroom: 1. Expect effort, not perfection - Praise persistence and progress. When children know you value the journey, not just the destination, they’ll take more risks and grow faster. 2. Speak belief out loud - Tell students what you see in them: “I can tell you’re thinking deeply about this,” or “I trust you to figure this out.” Those words plant roots that run deep. 3. Offer responsibility - Give every child a role or a moment to lead. When they feel trusted, their confidence becomes the engine for learning. 4. Catch them doing good - Notice the quiet acts of kindness, curiosity, or resilience. Recognition for who they are becoming is far more powerful than reward for what they’ve done. The truth is, children become what they see reflected in our eyes. When we look at them through a lens of hope, potential, and possibility, they begin to live up to it. #Education #Montessori #Teacher #Teaching #Children #TeacherTraining

Catch Them Shining: The Power of Positive Reinforcement This leadership principle emphasizes the importance of shifting focus from identifying shortcomings to acknowledging and appreciating positive contributions. Instead of solely pointing out errors, leaders should actively seek out instances where their team members excel. By recognizing and rewarding these behaviors, they cultivate a culture of encouragement and motivation. Why this is powerful: -Boosts Morale: Publicly acknowledging good work creates a positive and supportive environment. -Reinforces Desired Behaviors: Highlighting what's done right encourages repetition of those actions. -Motivates and Engages: Employees feel valued and are more likely to go the extra mile. -Fosters Growth: Positive reinforcement builds confidence and inspires individuals to strive for excellence. -Strengthens Relationships: Creates a foundation of trust and respect between leaders and their teams. Implementing this principle: -Be Observant: Actively look for examples of employees demonstrating desired behaviors. -Be Specific: Clearly articulate what the individual did well and its positive impact. -Be Timely: Provide recognition soon after the action to maximize its effect. -Be Sincere: Genuine appreciation fosters a culture of authenticity and trust. -Make it Public: Recognize achievements in team meetings or company-wide communications to amplify the positive impact. #success #people #Growthhacking #mindset Views are personal.