While yearly or half-yearly performance reviews can seem scary at first, they can also present an opportunity for you to plan your career development and advance yourself within the company – even if you get negative feedback. The key to taking advantage of your performance review is preparation, so for this blog, we’ll be giving you some simple tips on how to prepare for your upcoming performance review:
- Review Yourself: Before your review, write out a list of your job responsibilities and then evaluate yourself in each of these areas. This will help you anticipate how the meeting will go and will help prevent overreacting to negative feedback, as you should have a sense for what to expect. If you do see areas where you might be criticized, think of some strategies for working on them in advance – this will signal to your supervisor that you’re committed to bettering yourself.
- Prove Your Worth: This may seem obvious, but it’s important – be sure to come prepared with a list of your own accomplishments over the year. Think about what you’ve done to move the company forward, goals you’ve set and achieved, projects and extra work you’ve taken on, and how you’ve worked on your own development since your last review. The more specific your examples are, the better. Come prepared with numbers and statistics to show your contributions.
- Be Open to Criticism: Your review should never be confrontational. If you receive criticism or negative feedback, never allow yourself to get defensive – instead, start by thanking your reviewer for the valuable feedback. Ask for specific examples to help you better understand the problem, and don’t be afraid to ask your reviewer’s opinion on how you can best work on improving the issue.
- Use It As a Springboard: Ultimately, your review is a chance for you to help chart and guide your growth through the company and in your career – so prepare accordingly. If you’re a high performer and are planning to ask for a raise, have a target number in mind before going into the meeting. If there’s an area or project you want to be more involved in, come prepared with what exactly you’d like to do and reasons why you’d be up for the job. This is an opportunity to communicate your desires for the future – so use it!
- Have more questions about how to make the most of your career? We’re always here to help. Feel free to call us at 1-800-538-6645 or reach out to us at our contact page to find out more about how we can help you move your career forward, and don’t forget to check back to this blog for more tips and info on career development. We can’t wait to hear from you, and we hope these tips help you make the most of your upcoming performance review!
