With 2013 behind us and a brand new year underway, many of us may be anxious to get our performance reviews done and over with. For those who have yet to meet with the big boss, we ask: Are you ready for your annual review?
Performance reviews are like adult style report cards. You know they're coming, there's a bit of an uneasy feeling in your stomach and perhaps like a contestant on a game show, you're awaiting that make-or-break moment. My one advice is, just own it'the good, the bad and the ugly. In this post, I'll take you through three easy steps on how you can prepare for your annual performance review.
Step 1: Love it or hate it, just list it!
I love lists. If you haven't noticed, most of my posts are driven by lists. A list is a great way to keep track of what you had in mind and also the best satisfaction for me is the moment that you can cross something off that list! You might think lists are for grocery shopping on Sundays, (think again!).
There are so many ways that you can make the right list work for you in a short period of time. This takes pre-planning. You want to make your master list in the beginning of the year when you have set your goals. This ensures you're on track throughout the year. When performance review time comes, you have a record of what you did the entire year and it's easier to get it down on paper or, shall I say, the computer screen. And if you ever have to adjust the goal, you can keep track of it too on the same list.
Personally, once I set my goals for the year I divide my list into monthly chunks. This way I know when I'm planning my month, I have a specific focus. Also, this keeps the goals reasonable and less overwhelming. A handy app I use is Wunderlist'great for on-the-go notes!
Step 2: Strive for a personal standard, not perfection.
I love this quote from Emily Ley: I will hold myself to a standard of grace, not perfection. When I saw this quote, it really spoke to me (maybe because my name is Grace so it's a double whammy!), and it's the first time I ever purchased a printed quote and had it framed. It now hangs in my office to remind me that no one is perfect during the times that I have an unrealistic thought or idea in my head.
So what's your personal standard? Ensure you understand this and can communicate it in your performance review. When things go sideways, or not according to plan, the best way is to own up to it and call it out. The most important thing is to demonstrate what you had learned from the experience and how you're going to leverage those lessons moving forward. Trust me, you'll feel better after this part of the prep.
You can't change what has already happened, but you can change the plan going forward. When you really take a step back and look at the big picture, the worst thing that could've gone wrong isn't really the worst thing. I mean, you're still here, right? You're still standing. I always think about the fact that I'm glad my career doesn't involve delivering babies or landing planes. And if you're in the business of delivering babies and landing planes, come back next year because I haven't figured out the answers yet for your skill set!
Step 3: Be specific and set the tone for this year's goals!
Now that you're there, the one thing I can say is to be specific. Highlight the wins by giving great examples in different scenarios. By knowing what has happened and how you can improve, you'll know the path where you're headed when setting or continuing the goals for the following year. I had a past performance review a long time ago where my manager didn't explain to me what the rating system meant. In this particular system of one to five, a three meant an A, where you're doing your job and doing it well, and a one meant you're already performing consistently at the next level. So me, being the typical type-A overachieving Aries, Asian, and first born, need I say more? Of course I rated myself a one on everything! As you can imagine it was a huge surprise to me (and my ego!) when she started rating me a three, which is really good in this case, but I wasn't set up to expect that at all.
Another time, I will never forget: I went into a performance review where the feedback said I make people cry. My reaction: really? What I thought I was doing was helping the others on my team realize their opportunities so that they can grow further; it was certainly not my intention to make them cry. However, as you can see my original intent wasn't taken that way and clearly I had a blind spot in being more understanding to someone else's emotions. This remains to this day one of my biggest areas of opportunity. It's still a work in progress, but I'm owning it!
Grace Lanuza is a contributing blogger for Talent Formula. Follow talentformula.ca for latest news and opinions on growing your career!
About the author:
Grace's 10+ years in the ever-changing world of experiential marketing taught her the importance of having the right team in the right roles. Expanding her passion for people, Grace recently grew her career in the talent acquisition and employment branding space managing campus recruiting across North America for Mosaic, a top marketing agency. You can expect Grace's unique voice to be found blogging about Gen-Y hiring, motivating your team, interviewing tips and tricks, and best practices to keep remote employees engaged.