Constructive feedback can be a challenge to accept because one, it makes you realize you are not as great as you thought, and two, while we all want to hear wonderful things about ourselves, there will be times when you will get feedback that is not flattering. When this happens, the question simply becomes, what will you do with it? Will you sit there in denial or will you roll up your sleeves and take the challenge to improve? I hope you choose the latter...read on.
Reservation
I'll
never forget that day when I had to deliver a 20-minute presentation in
my marketing class and someone evaluated how many times I said "uhm".
Student evaluations were part of the grade, but this particular
evaluation was different because I was not aware of my use of the phrase
"uhm", as if it was a real word. The person that wrote the student
evaluation stated that I said "uhm" 43 times in a 20 minute period.
That's about 2 "uhms" a minute! I felt so bad, especially because I
thought I had done well delivering my presentation and was not aware
that I had this crutch.
Fast
forward a year, my manager Invited me to a Toastmasters meeting at a
nearby church. We used our lunch hour on Tuesdays to visit the meeting.
We regularly participated in the table topics sessions and delivering
speeches. After six months, the club dissolved from lack of members and
my manager and I chartered a Toastmasters chapter at our place of
employment.
Revelation
Revelation
Our
Toastmasters club was chartered in 2005, and since then has garnered
the President's Distinguished Award for several years. This award is
given by Toastmasters International for meeting or exceeding the highest
standard for a successful club. I served as President for two years,
and during that time my leadership team created strategic programs to
help this employee-led organization gain visibility with senior leaders
and employees. Some of the programs my team and I created included a
speaker series, an advisory council made up of leaders from functional
areas such as Human Resources, Finance, and Operations. We staffed an
alternate meeting for employees who could not attend the regular
meeting, started a mentoring program, and other events to keep the club
moving forward while focusing on employee development.
Results
As
I look back on that day when I delivered that horrible presentation in
marketing class, I had two choices: stay in denial and do nothing, or
take the challenge to improve what someone so graciously pointed out.
That person, whoever he was, gave me a gift, and that simple feedback
has exponentially changed my life for the better. Not only did I improve
my public speaking skills, but I also developed leadership skills,
gained visibility, and created relationships with people from all levels
of the organization.
If
you have been given constructive feedback, take an honest assessment of
yourself. If you agree there is room for improvement, then make a plan
to do something about it. Choosing improvement over denial can give your
career the lift you've been looking for!
 |
| Lake Linear, Georgia |
Your destiny is in the horizon, how you get there is the beauty in the journey.
- Stacey
