Constructive Criticism

Offering Criticism

If you are called on to offer constructive criticism as a component of your work, or if you find yourself in a personal situation where your advice is either needed or solicited, you should always review the steps of successful constructive criticism. By going into the situation armed with the right tools, you can achieve maximum impact with minimum contention.

Review the Situation

Take a step back from the situation that is calling for criticism. In order to offer advice that is free from potential "danger zones," you have to eliminate your own motives and emotions.

For example, if you are giving an annual review to an employee, make sure you outline exactly what you would like the outcome to be. Your most likely purpose is to get better productivity from your employee. However, when done incorrectly, a review can actually make an employee feel worse about him or herself, the job, and you as an employer – especially if you focus on things that don't specifically relate to job skills and functions. Make sure you take any personal issues out of the situation and concentrate on what you need to say to get the desired results.

In the same way, it is important to remove any objects of self-interest from the criticism. It is not about how YOU would handle a situation or how it affects YOU. It is about what you can do to help the other person improve. This is neither the time nor the place to set yourself apart as superior in any way.

Look at the Situation from Both Sides

Anyone who has been on the receiving end of criticism knows it can be a hard pill to swallow. Remember what it is like to get advice and criticism – no matter how kindly meant or innocuous it may be. When you put yourself in the other person's shoes, you are more likely to understand the feelings and emotions that inevitably go along with it; therefore eliminating the potential for surprise or conflict.

Consider a parent who is instructing his or her child on the importance of calling to ask permission before inviting a friend over for dinner. Although it may seem like light years away, a parent who can remember what it's like to be young and to want to spend time with a good friend is more likely to get his or her point across than one who looks at everything from a strictly adult point-of-view.

Never Focus on the Person

Just as you must emotionally detach yourself from the criticism, you must also detach the other person's concept of self from the situation. Even if your criticism centers on the behavior or opinions of the other party, it's important to refrain from belittling him or her as a person. Instead, focus on the actions that are causing the problem.

For example, imagine you have a friend whose bad breath is creating social problems. Perhaps your other acquaintances ask you to stop inviting your friend to poker night, since his breath creates unpleasantness for the group as a whole. Even though it is your friend's hygiene that is in question, you must detach his faults from the scenario. Tell him that the garlic pills he takes every morning might have an effect on the way his breath smells later in the day, or discuss the techniques your dentist recommends for halitosis. By focusing the object of the conversation on physical details, you sidestep any blame on him as a person.

Use the "Sandwich" Approach

Imagine the side view of a basic ham sandwich. On either end you have a nice, thick piece of bread; in the middle is the lunch meat. Let the ham represent your criticism, and the bread represent positive things you have to say. This deceptively simple idea is the cornerstone of most constructive criticism protocols. By tempering your criticism by "sandwiching" it between compliments or positive things to say, you are eliminating the potential for conflict.

Using the same analogy, you have to keep your proportions equal. Your ham sandwich shouldn't be overloaded with meat – no one wants to be inundated with criticism. Even if you have more issues that need to be addressed, save them for another day's "meal."

Another important concept here is to not make your approach too obvious. For example, if you're offering feedback of an associate's short story, avoid offering a pattern of good-bad-good concepts in the writing. Instead, try to open up a two-sided dialog that focuses on the good as well as the not-so-good points in a more conversational style.

Invite Collaboration

The idea of a two-sided dialog is central to effectively offering constructive criticism. Even if you're working with a clearly authoritative relationship (for example, boss to employee), there are still two people with valid, important ideas in the room. Listen when the other person talks, and do your best to include what they are saying in your own criticism.

In this same vein, allow the other person in the conversation to take an active part in the decision-making process. Imagine you are offering advice on working as a team for a marketing campaign. You hope to get the other person to stop shooting down everything the team comes up with. Address the problem at hand and invite the other person to come up with some ideas of his or her own. This kind of ownership not only reduces potential conflict, but it generally results in a better end product, as well.