This one little word makes all the difference…
A few years ago, a CEO told me how she was struggling to get honest feedback from her board.
“What feedback does anyone have for me?” She’d hear crickets.
Even though they were board members — people who are supposed to hold her accountable as the CEO of the company — they shied away from offering their honest input.
This was so perplexing to the CEO. She felt like she was being very clear with what she wanted Why weren’t they just giving her the feedback she was asking for?
“What advice does anyone have for me?”All of sudden, everyone started weighing in.
The word “Advice” unlocked all the honest feedback that CEO needed.
Why? The word “Feedback’” carries a lot of baggage.
“Advice” is a much more welcoming word.
When someone gives you advice, they’re just looking out for you.
When you ask for advice, it’s an invitation.
You’re signaling that another person has expertise or knowledge that you find interesting and valuable.
That person is often flattered you even asked for advice in the first place.
Who doesn’t love to give advice? :-).The next time you’d like to get honest feedback, try asking for advice instead. Notice how much more people open up to you.
Originally published at Cogly.
