03 Sep The Forgotten Superpower
When it comes to our careers, lives and leadership we are always looking for a superpower, something that will take us to the next level. I recently sat down with a company called Career Success to discuss what I have learned in my thirty years coaching leaders. It was a great conversation captured in an audio and video podcast. We covered a lot of ground on how to be a better leader and grow your career/life.
They asked for me for a career superpower and the answer was easy: The capacity to seek and use feedback to improve. One of my mentors Ken Blanchard called feedback “the breakfast of champions” and he was right. Yet most of us don’t seek it, don’t open up to it and then make changes based on it.
Research shows that one of the main reasons people stall in their careers or fail to rise as leaders is because of important feedback they received (often early in their careers) that they didn’t take seriously.
And we shouldn’t wait for feedback to come to us. We should seek it- even beg for it! Leaders should ask their people “What one or two things if I did them differently would make me an even better leader?” Spouses should ask their partner the same question. We should ask our children how we could be a better parent (Yes, they will tell you if you listen).
Asking for feedback is one thing, really being open to it is another. Most of us respond to feedback defensively. We respond by saying “Thank you…but” which means we are about to defend. Instead say “Thank you, tell me more.” Lean deeply into curiosity.
I see this in business too. Customers or clients give us important feedback and instead of being curious about their experiences we start defending. We learn nothing from defense and everything from humility.
The podcast was filled with lots of other great ideas for your career and life, so I hope you will take a listen. Meanwhile, who did you ask for feedback from today and did you REALLY listen to it? Doing so is a Superpower!
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