A student asked me recently, “Why do I need to give anyone feedback?  I’m not a manager and I don’t want to be one.”

I thought it was a good question.  Certainly, supervisors need to give input to their employees, but if you aren’t the boss, do you ever give people feedback?

From my perspective, the answer would be a resounding yes!  Even though I don’t have authority over them, I give my friends and family feedback all the time.  If something happens that bothers me, I let them know, hopefully in the kindest way I can.  Even more important, I always try to tell them what makes them so impressive, because, afterall, who doesn’t need an ego boost once and again.

So what do you think?  Who do you give feedback to most often?  How would you respond to the situations below?

1.  Your roommate leaves dirty dishes all over the house.

2.  Your employee is competent, but isn’t pro-active.

3.  Your friend is fun and creative, but he/she is a little ditsy and forgets your plans.

4.  Your colleague often leaves work unfinished so you have to fill in the uncompleted details.

Use the following words in the paragraph below.
resounding
authority
bother
ego boost
pro-active
ditsy
Shout out
Call out

During the staff retreat, coworkers gave ________________s to each other, recognizing them for their talents and hard work.  It was an  ________________for most workers and made them feel positive about themselves.  Unfortunately, there was one employee who was not complimented.  He was met with ____________________ silence.   Apparently, he ______________ed his coworkers because he was ___________ and forgot responsibilities.  Once the _____________________s realized the problem, they chose to be _________________ and offered another meeting where colleagues could meet one-on-one to __________ each other __________ over bad habits.

The following phrases can help you politely give feedback (compliments or criticisms) to your colleagues.

Positive Feedback

•         I want to compliment you on __noun__/ ___verb__ing.
•         I was impressed by your/his/her ____noun___.
•         You/he/she models ____noun___.

Negative Feedback

•         I would encourage you to improve/develop your ____noun___/ focus on ___verb ing.
•         I would like to offer you some constructive criticism on ____noun___.  In the future, you                         could/should ___verb___.
•         An area for growth is ____noun___.

Practice these phrases, and other Business English skills at our Business English class held on Sunday afternoons.  Click here to learn more.