Overcome Your Resistance to Feedback

The ability to receive feedback gracefully is a skill that sets great leaders apart.

Constructive feedback is a compass for personal and professional growth, allowing leaders to enhance their strengths and identify and address their weaknesses Specifically, feedback provides insights into blind spots, highlights areas for improvement, reinforces positive behaviors, and creates a healthy foundation for team building. Leaders who recognize the value of feedback create an environment where team members feel heard and comfortable communicating openly.

Despite its benefits, many leaders are resistant to feedback.

Resistance often stems from fear of criticism, pride, or a wrong-headed idea that leaders should have all the answers. To push through this resistance, leaders must cultivate a growth mindset, viewing feedback as a gift and an opportunity for learning and development, rather than a threat.

Leaders with a growth mindset understand that abilities can be developed with practice and time. A growth mindset meets feedback with openness and curiosity, rather than fear and defensiveness.

A person with a growth mindset also sees feedback as data, rather than taking criticism personally, they extract valuable insights for improvement of their skills and knowledge.

Another way leaders can lessen their negative feelings toward feedback is to seek it out. Actively seeking feedback rather than waiting for it to come ensures the leader is more ready and willing to hear it. It also demonstrates the leader’s genuine commitment to growth to the team.

Great leaders prepare themselves to receive feedback by seeking to:

• Understand the value of feedback;

• Overcome their resistance;

• Cultivate a growth mindset;

• Create a culture that embraces feedback; and

• Seek feedback proactively.

Embracing feedback not only enhances individual leadership skills but also contributes to the overall success and growth of the team and organization.