Feedback is a necessity. As a leader you must provide constructive feedback in a personable and helpful way. Trial and error is only successful if there are feedback mechanisms in place to ensure mistakes are corrected in a timely fashion. Without structured feedback, the employee may fail and a mistake could affect the rest of your team.
Personable is Helpful
Delivering unsolicited harsh feedback can destroy the trust built with team members. Necessary feedback can and should be given in a constructive and encouraging way. As leaders, we always want to foster an environment of growth and development. This includes when employees make mistakes. Show them it is OK to be human.
How to Get the Words Out
Have you made similar mistakes in the past? Share your failures and how you overcame them. They will appreciate your vulnerability, and even learn not to repeat the same mistakes. Is your employee struggling to understand an aspect of a project? Take the time to revisit it and use helpful language. Recognize where they performed well and confirm you are on their side, you want them to succeed.
[Giving Feedback]