|
When seeking feedback, ask for it when you're 30% done and 90% done. If you wait until you're nearly done, the feedback you receive might push you into a significant, and time-consuming, reworking of the project. Alternatively, it might be a great idea, but too late to incorporate. Instead, seek feedback at the 30% mark that focuses on the big ideas and direction of the work. Use feedback at the 90% mark to polish things up and catch any last details or typos that you've overlooked. Doing so will get you more out of both sets of feedback.
|
Perspiration
It's back to school time, and this marks my 25th year of teaching and coaching. My teams are gearing up for the fall season, coaches have more to do than hours in the day, and players are anticipating the first competition. It can be a bit of a blur, which makes it a great time remind you of WIN - What's Important Now. This year, I encourage you to take a measured, intentional, and proactive approach, rather than reacting to what's thrown at you. Take time to pause, reflect, and focus on what's most important. In addition to WIN, consider applying Dwight D. Eisenhower's decision matrix. I think you'll find this makes the fall less frenzied.
|
|
Inspiration Heck, a senior golfer at Stanford, started ROTC as a freshman. She also won an individual national championship that year, and then helped her team to the national championship as a sophomore. In the last year and half, however, she's missed significant time due to a bout with mono and thoracic outlet syndrome. The latter required surgery and the removal of a rib in March (It now sits in her bathroom). Last week's US Women's Amateur marked her return to competitive golf. Instead of dialing in her game on the practice tee, she was honing her physical conditioning, weapons skills, and survival training in the Alabama woods. With plans of graduating from Stanford, becoming a fighter pilot, and playing on the LPGA Tour, Heck has a lot on her plate. Through it all, she remains grounded as a person and a bubbly inspiration to her teammates. Her gratitude, faith, and discipline are clearly evident. A selfless player, Heck says watching her teammate, Rose Zhang, win the Augusta National Women's Amateur, was the best week of her life. Rachel Heck is a gamer, and she advanced all the way to the semifinals of the Women's Amateur. Check out the perspective she shared just moments after being defeated in the semifinals by another good friend. You'll see why we're a fan.
|
|
Preparation Giving, and receiving, feedback is essential to the improvement of individual and team performance. There is trap to feedback, however. We frequently fall into giving too much feedback. When this happens, the hearer's attention is divided, and they struggle with incorporating any of the feedback. This leads to frustration on both the part of the coach and the player. The coach thinks the player isn't listening, and the player doesn't know what to focus on.
Even though there probably are a dozen issues that need correction, pick the most important one and focus on that. In The Happiness Advantage, Shawn Achor calls this "The Zorro Circle." By focusing on a single, manageable goal, one regains a sense of control, facilitates progress, and develops confidence. Focusing on one point at a time is likely to produce faster and better results than trying to emphasize multiple points over and over. Once the point is mastered, move on to the next most important issue.
|
If you found this helpful, please share it with others.
Missed an edition? Check out the archives.
|
|
|
|