DON'T FEAR NEGATIVE FEEDBACK - ASK FOR IT!
Who of us would not prefer to receive applause for our product, service or presentation from adoring fans rather than jeers from angry, bored or irritated prospects, audiences or customers?
When it comes to feedback, which would you prefer ... positive feedback or negative feedback? "You did a GREAT job!" "Your presentation was AWESOME!" "I LOVE the way you deliver your services!" vs. "That didn't go very well, did it! You could have done a MUCH better job!" "Your presentation was slow and boring!" "I HATE the way you deliver your services!" The answer is obvious!
If positive feedback encourages us so much and builds up our self-confidence, which is so vital to our moving forward, then why would we want to ask for negative feedback? And besides, when it comes to negative feedback, you don't really have to ASK for it anyway, right? People are so ready to slam you if you mess up! You're going to hear it anyway, aren't you? These are good questions, and the answers may surprise you!
While you may think people are ready to 'rag on' you at every opportunity, this is not really true of most people. Most would rather just keep quiet and smile at you, all the while thinking, "That was the worst presentation I have ever heard!" People in general don't really want to hurt your feelings, especially if it is someone you work with or network with, or someone who is a friend or acquaintance of yours, or even a relative. They may also be nervous about what your reaction might be and would rather not risk your getting aggravated with them for saying something negative, so they just keep quiet! Oh, don't get me wrong; it's likely that they will say this to someone, maybe to a lot of people; it just won't be you! Problem is, you are the one who could benefit most from hearing what they are thinking and saying to others. After all, there may actually be something to their critique, and if you don't know about it, you can't fix it! So you'll go on making the same mistake over and over again, meanwhile your reputation is suffering, without your even being aware of it!
Think about it: Negative feedback can be your best friend! But if you are defensive about it, ignore it or get mad at the messenger, you have just pushed aside the very thing that can help you the most in your quest for advancement! Instead, make it a habit to ask for both kinds of feedback at the end of every presentation, every project, every transaction, every thing! Recently my phone rang with a "Quality Control Survey Call" from a store I had just done business with. They asked me this: "On a scale from 1-7, how would you rate the service we provided?" There were a series of 1-7 questions and I answered them honestly. The one question she didn't ask me, which I think would have been the most valuable of all, is "What would we need to do to make it a 7?" Arming themselves with that information from everyone they do business with would put them in the best position to make their products and services superior in the marketplace! Clearly, they were concerned about their customers and the delivery of their services, and I appreciated the intent. I also recognized that making this call was more than what most stores do by far! But they would have had an even better chance of elevating their services in a way that would guarantee pleasing their customers in the future by asking that one additional question.
So here it is - No one loves to receive negative feedback, and most people are not going to ask for it; but realizing that few people are going to volunteer a negative comment, makes it important for you to ASK. So from now on, don't be afraid of it - embrace it! A pilot gets "course correction" information 96% of the time during any given flight! What would happen if the pilot took it personally when someone in the tower told them they were "off course." What if they just got mad or decided to ignore the information. To say that would be counter-productive is an understatement! Negative feedback can be the "course correction" information you need to keep you on track. So don't take it personally! View it strictly as valuable information that you can use to make course corrections and get where you want to go. How can you do this? Simply ask how they would rate your product, service, presentation, training, coaching or whatever, and then ask what they would suggest to make it better. Can't hurt you if you have the right mindset. It can only help you. Negative feedback is a gift! Just thank the person for caring enough to share that information with you, embrace it, and then use it to your benefit and improvement! Trust me, you will advance much quicker with it than without it! (And by the way - I encourage your comments on this article: both positive and negative!) 
To your success,
Leanne Cannon
Author, Speaker, Business Coach
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