Do You Want Your Feedback Straight Up, or With a Bit of Sugar?

I believe in the oreo cookie approach to giving feedback. The recipe is quite simple: Start by acknowledging something you appreciate. Offer your corrections. End by stating something you approve of. This approach wraps what might be difficult to hear in between things that are much more pleasant to the ears. Straight Up Criticism Recently I got some unvarnished feedback. I had worked for a couple of hours on writing the copy for an e-newsletter. I had really … [Read more...]

The Oreo Cookie Approach to Constructive Criticism

How do you feel when someone sends you an email thanking you for something you did and telling you what a great job you did? Feels good, right? Now think about how you feel when you get a curt email pointing out several small mistakes in a big project you spent hours working on. All of that warm positive emotion goes away in a hurry. You feel criticized and under appreciated. Unconstructive Criticism That's just what happened to me this morning when a colleague … [Read more...]