No matter where you work, or what your role, the only way to grow and improve is with feedback. Giving—and receiving—feedback is a skill that's relevant to every founder, entrepreneur or member of an organisation. 

The topic of giving feedback is now back on the agenda. As Rachel Lefkowitz wrote in a LinkedIn Learning blog, “many of us are already emotionally tapped with daily to-do lists that feel unmanageable and life and career goals that feel destabilized. In this state of mind, it can feel natural to take well-intended feedback as a personal attack or criticism.”

In difficult times the need for feedback is even stronger, as many of us still require it to move forward in our careers, whether it’s done remotely or not. Whether it's with peers, managers, colleagues, team members, friends, or family, providing feedback can be a daunting and tricky process. But it doesn’t have to be this way. There are five principles to giving high quality feedback that apply across the board.

Even with giving feedback, preparation is key to success.

When you’re asked to give feedback, there’s no shame in asking for some time to think it over and gather your thoughts first. Be considerate in your approach and plan how you’d like to deliver the message. At this early stage, it’s worth asking yourself how you’ll deliver the feedback, for example: will it be a face-to-face video chat or a simple email? Then reflect and write down what your key points are along with clear examples to illustrate those points.

It’s not always what we say that makes an impact, but how we say it.

If you want to deliver constructive feedback, make sure you are supportive and informal, suggesting ways to overcome challenges or change behaviours. When considering your tone of voice, focus on being approachable and empathetic. Remember that, in order for feedback to be constructive, your job is to help the other person find solutions, rather than dwell on development areas for too long.

Facts are sacred, so make sure they are the focus.

At times, you’ll just be asked for your opinion, and that’s valid as a point of view. However, if you’re providing more formal or thorough feedback, use facts as examples to help the other person understand your point of view. Focusing on facts helps to make the feedback feel less personal and more objective. Gather various examples to provide a broad perspective rather than a one-off event and feel free to state which parts of feedback are just your personal opinion and which parts are based on facts. While you do this, remember to take regular breaks to ask the other person for their feedback and whether they see the event or situation in the same way.

Listen better to understand better.

This cannot be stressed enough. While it may seem straightforward, one of the downfalls of these types of conversations is that the person giving the feedback does not listen deeply enough. Delivering feedback isn’t a one-way street, it should be a collaborative process. Practice active listening, which is all about taking the other person’s perspective on board. Make sure you leave time for the other person to digest the information and discuss their views too, and ask them how everything fits with what they think or what others have said.

Highlight that feedback is a way to improve in the future.

Help the other person understand they can use the information you’re providing them as a data point, which can then be used to create a plan. We all have development potential, the key is to create a forward focus. Frame your feedback in a way that’s useful and can help the other person make improvements. This can be done by using facts and data, but mostly with a clear focus on future opportunities all throughout the conversation.

If you'd like to learn a bit more about how you can enhance your skill at delivering feedback, there are various LinkedIn Learning courses on the topic that are free to access until the end of June.

I'd love to hear about your feedback experience - is it easier or trickier in a virtual world? Why is this such a trending topic right now? Please feel free to share your perspective.

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Mindset Matters is a series of LinkedIn articles to help you thrive in your career. Ready to take the next step and build your resilience or transform your career? Explore videos, courses, tips and resources over on Resilience Edge and Career Compass Club.