Asking for feedback and receiving feedback: Tips & Examples

Your development starts with asking for feedback. You can ask for feedback on a personal or business level. By asking your classmates or manager, you will learn more about what you are good at. They will also tell you in what areas you could improve. Receiving feedback often works well for motivation. But how to ask for feedback? And what is the best way to receive feedback? We have listed the advantages of asking for feedback. We’ll also give you various tips, and include examples of how to ask for feedback.

Tips for asking for feedback

Asking for feedback is not always easy. It is a skill you have to master. Fortunately, we have listed some tips for you that will make asking for good feedback a lot easier:

Choose your moment to ask for feedback → timing is everything, also when you ask for feedback. It is therefore useful to schedule an appointment in advance. This way, the person you are asking for feedback has time to prepare your feedback;
Ask colleagues for feedback → when asking for feedback, choose people you work closely with. They know best how you work and what could be improved. Their feedback is therefore very valuable. Moreover, you can immediately implement the feedback you receive;
Prepare your feedback interview → if you want to receive feedback, it is because you want to develop yourself. You can do this by asking yourself the following questions in advance: what competencies do I want to receive feedback on? In which direction do I want to develop in the coming year? What do you hope to get out of the conversation?

You will get the most out of your personal development by choosing the right moment with the right person and preparing well for the feedback interview.

Tips for receiving feedback

Now that you have asked for feedback, it is time to receive it. Receiving feedback is difficult for many people: after all, it is easy to take it personally and perceive it as negative commentary. Fortunately, like asking for feedback, receiving feedback is a skill you can learn. With the following tips, you will be fully prepared for the next time you’ll receive feedback:

Be specific → tell the person giving feedback on which topic(s) exactly you want to receive feedback. After all, targeted feedback on skills you want to develop is much more useful;
Ask open questions and keep asking! → When you ask your colleagues for feedback, it is important to ask open questions and keep on asking questions. This will ensure that you get comprehensive answers and understand everything about the feedback they give;
Don't defend yourself → however appealing it may be, try not to get defensive when you receive (negative) feedback: apply a growth mindset. This is not only respectful towards yourself but also respectful towards the person giving you feedback.

Asking for feedback: examples

Now that you know how best to ask for feedback and to receive feedback, it's time to get started yourself. But what are good feedback questions? We have listed several examples of specific feedback questions. They will give you more direction in your feedback conversation:

What do you think I should change in my behavior to improve my work?
What strengths and weaknesses do I have and how could I improve on them?
Do you have an example of a situation where you think I acted well and one where you would have acted differently?
What do you think about the way we work together?

With these feedback questions examples, you are well on your way already. Do you find them a bit too boring and would you rather ask for feedback creatively? Then maybe the questions below are for you:

Imagine I would be an animal: what animal would I be and why?
If you had to come up with a workplace prize for which I would have the chance to win, which would it be?
If you were allowed to take one trait from me and delete it, which trait would it be?
How long do you think I would survive on a desert island and why?

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