What to Do After a Bad Performance Review - The Muse

What to Do After a Bad Performance Review - The MuseWhat to Do After a Bad Performance Review So, you just got out of your performance review and it was elend good. Whether you were anticipating the bad news or it was a total surprise, it stings. You might currently be feeling some combination of embarrassment, disappointment, shock, fear, and anger, or youre worried that your job may be on shaky ground. But know that all is not lost During my career as a corporate psychologist, Ive witnessed numerous professionals who used their negative reviews as a big-time reality check that spurred them on to greater success. With some focused effort, you too can take on the challenge and turn things around.Here are seven tips to get you back on track1. Allow Yourself to Feel Bummed OutWhile you might be tempted to protect your ego by dismissing or rationalizing your boss feedback, resist the urge. Research suggests that by giving yourself a chance to experience the negative emotions associated with failure, youll be mora motivated to do better next time. Feeling the pain now can act as powerful fuel to prevent yourself from making similar mistakes in the future. So, go ahead and mope (at home, of course).2. Aim for a Sense of PerspectiveOnce youve given yourself a chance to feel your feelings, nows the time to take a step back and focus on doing something about it. No one enjoys getting a negative review (especially if we dont like how it was delivered). Still, if you can look at the feedback objectively, youll be able to benefit from it. Muse career coach, Loren Margolis, advises in an article on umgang bad feedback that if you really have a hard time moving past your negative emotions, give yourself time to process it.She adds While youre processing it, write down your thoughts and the actual feedback think through some of the questions youd like to ask in advance of your next meeting. Then, ask them when you meet with your boss again.3. Set Clear GoalsOnce youve determ ined the areas that you need to work on, set clear goals. Make them challenging, yet achievable by your next review, and articulate what success for each one might look like. Youll definitely want to run them past your boss so you can make sure youre on the right track and incorporating feedback correctly.4. Create a Development PlanWhile goals are great, youll be much more likely to accomplish them if you have a strategy. Therefore, for each one, write out a step-by-step plan of action to guide your efforts. To make this as helpful as possible, consider the resources youll need. Are there books you could read? Make a list. Can a colleague or your boss help you? If so, figure out what you need from them and ask. Do you need to take a course or get a coach? Do some research.Once youve compiled this, present it to your boss and ask for their feedback. This will show that youre taking your review seriously- and they may even have the budget or resources to help you move forward. Finall y, start tracking your accomplishments so you can arrive at your next review with tangible evidence of your improvements using this handy worksheet.5. Ask for Ongoing FeedbackTo gauge how youre doing over the next several months, check in with your boss and get their input (youll likely want to schedule these check-ins into your plan if you dont meet regularly). Not only will this give you vital information thatll help you to continue to course-correct, itll demonstrate to your manager a genuine desire to improve. You might also want to ask some trusted co-workers for ongoing feedback. In addition to giving you an additional perspective on how youre doing, your colleagues can act as accountability partners thatll help you stay on track.6. Rebuild Your Other RelationshipsSpeaking of your colleagues, they can be a huge influence in repairing your reputation in your boss mind.So, youll want to be intentional about improving your relationships with everyone you work with. For example, i f you were noted in your review as being unreliable, create systems so that you can be more responsive and meet co-workers deadlines. If you scored low on teamwork, find more ways to work with others on projects. You might even want to alert the people around you what youre working on. Being honest about your weaknesses builds trust, and your co-workers will be more likely to notice the changes youre making (and bring them up to your manager). Plus, itll put more peer pressure on you to keep it up.7. Be ConsistentUnfortunately, the sad truth is that when youre changing a behavior, it can take a while for people to notice. Due to a phenomenon called confirmatory bias, were much more likely to notice things that confirm our beliefs than those we dont believe in. In other words, if youre seen as the office hothead, then even if youve been keeping your cool all month, people will still notice the one time you lash out in a meeting. If youre trying to change your boss opinion about you, youll need to be diligent about demonstrating new behaviors, and realize it may take others some time to believe that theyre actually going to stick.The bottom line? Setbacks such as a poor performance review are a part of life, and many accomplished people have been on the receiving end of criticism. Make the decision to use the failure as a catalyst for professional development, and commit to getting better. In a years time, youll walk out of your next performance review feeling awesome.