Feedback Works Both Ways

Employees blossom with positive feedback from bosses, but this works both ways. Don’t hesitate to give your boss positive feedback when things go right. You’ll nourish a more effective and rewarding relationship and contribute to your own job satisfaction by reinforcing what works. Bosses have a powerful effect on employee happiness, so help them out by keeping the communication flowing. Don’t underestimate your role in nurturing a powerful and constructive relationship with your boss. The secret is reciprocity and mutual respect. You may be subordinate in the hierarchy, but what you say and think matter.

Handling Delicate Conversations

Discussing with a coworker the need to correct a personal habit or stop an annoying behavior is an age-old dreaded experience. If you have procrastinated with such a chore, chances are you’ve grown more irritable and frustrated, but is your job satisfaction and productivity also slipping? If so, it’s a good sign to delay no more. Realize that the reaction you imagine getting when you broach the subject is almost always overblown. Thankfulness is a much more likely response from your coworker than shock and horror, so go for a polite style. To proceed, request a private meeting and say you would like to offer some feedback that is difficult to share and that it is personal. This is a buffering introduction to help your coworker be receptive. Share your concern in a direct but calm manner. Always add how the behavior affects your productivity or work environment. Smart move: Affirm the value you and others maintain for your coworker. This won't undermine your goal, and it will add to your coworker’s motivation to change.