Ever asked for feedback?

notlistening“What do you think of these new shoes I’ve just bought?”
“What do you reckon to that goal I scored, eh?”
“Does my bum look big in this?”

– all questions asking for feedback where the last thing you really want is the truth.

But what if the questions on your mind are:

“How did that presentation really come across?”
“What did you think of the latest draft of the chapter I emailed to you last week?”
“Can I have some feedback on how I performed in the interview?”

It’s hard to get others to give you honest feedback unless you consider:

  • Why you want feedback
  • What kind of feedback you want
  • Who could give you feedback
  • How to ask for feedback
  • How to react to feedback

That’s a bit too much to cover in one blog post, so here’s a handout I’ve written, covering all those topics, plus hints on how to take the first steps in getting more, and more useful, feedback:

If you read it, whether you’re one of our postgrads or anyone else, I’d be interested in any feedback to help improve the advice and make sure it’s relevant. For example:

  • Is it clear?
  • Does it cover things which are of concern to you?
  • Is the tone right?
  • Are there any typos?

Just leave a comment if you’ve got any feedback.

4 responses to “Ever asked for feedback?”

  1. It’s very clear and helpful, thank you! It covers the main topics, keeps the right kind of tone, and I didn’t notice any typos. I read it through quickly. Being able to save it as a pdf is useful for me because I can easily refer to it when I’m next thinking about feedback issues.

    1. Elizabeth (Postgrad blog) Avatar
      Elizabeth (Postgrad blog)

      Hi Robbie

      Many thanks for your feedback – much appreciated!

      I’ve been writing a web resource to help PhDs during their research degree and wanted to do something on asking for feedback, and suddenly remembered a handout I’d written long ago. A quick rummage round our old training directories, a bit of a spring clean, and voila, a new “How to … Guide” for postgrads! Glad it still seems relevant.

      Good luck with getting feedback – ask the right people the right way and it can be really helpful.
      Elizabeth

  2. There’s some good information on Mindtools on the subject of feedback (both giving and receiving) including a helpful feedback matrix. See:
    http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/SKS-process.htm
    http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCDV_54.htm
    http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/UnfairCriticism.htm
    http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_98.htm

    1. Elizabeth (Postgrad blog) Avatar
      Elizabeth (Postgrad blog)

      Thanks Emma – some good articles there!

      Cheers
      Elizabeth

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