Leadership Work & ambitions

How to give feedback that helps people improve

Describe an observation, hear the context and agree a useful next step.

Use a specific event and its effect, distinguish fact from interpretation and invite the other person's account. Choose an appropriate setting and follow up on the agreed change. The pricing-slide example below shows this in practice.

Want new features first?

Start with three things you can do today

A starting goal

I want to give honest feedback that helps someone improve. I tend to soften the message too much and need a way to be specific, kind, and clear.

Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.

Start today

Three things you can do before the course exists.

Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.

Separate observation from interpretation
Original example: 'In the pricing review, the slide showed last month's figure. We paused to check which figure to use.' This is more checkable than 'You do not prepare' or a guess about the client's feelings.
Ask and agree a repair
Try: 'Was the new file available? For the next review, can we put the source date beside the number?' Listen for missing access or a changed instruction before concluding that effort was the problem.
Check timing and follow-through
Choose a private, appropriate setting and time to speak calmly. Later, check whether the source date and correct figure are present. Urgent safety or misconduct concerns may require the relevant workplace process.

Best for: Leadership
Prerequisites: None. Bring the situation you have.
Course length: 7 to 30 lessons
Pace: Yours. One lesson at a time, as often as you like.
Format: Read it, or play the audio
Access: Available on the App Store and Google Play, with an optional early testing list

Before the course is built

Setup asks about your situation first.

Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.

Who do you most need to give feedback to: reports, peers, or your manager?
Is your habit to soften it, delay it, or deliver it too bluntly?
Is there a piece of feedback you have been holding back?

Right for now

If any of this sounds familiar, start here.

You cushion it until it disappears

Check whether the observation and requested change are still clear.

You wait for the review

Consider whether an earlier, appropriate conversation would give the person useful information.

You are honest and it lands badly

The content is right and the person hears an attack.

Course arc

Where the course goes, in order.

Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.

01 / 06

What feedback is for

Changing behavior, not expressing frustration or ticking a box, and how that changes what you say.

Specific enough to act on

Observation, effect and request, with an example the person recognizes.

Kind and clear at once

Why care and directness are not a trade-off, and how to hold both in one sentence.

Timing and setting

Choose timing and privacy appropriate to the issue, verify facts and follow relevant workplace procedures.

When they disagree or shut down

Staying with the observation, hearing their view, and not withdrawing the point.

Feedback as a habit

Agreeing how to exchange useful feedback and review specific changes.

What changes

What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.

You will be able to

Turn a judgment into an observation

Describe what you observed and its effect, and allow for correction or missing context.

Deliver it so it can be used

Choose a suitable setting, explain the observation and listen to the response.

Follow through

Check what changed, and notice it out loud when it does.

Ideas this course corrects

Feedback should never wait

Promptness matters, but so do accuracy, safety and a suitable setting. Take time to calm down or verify facts when needed.

Praise must surround every correction

Keep appreciation sincere and the request clear. There is no universal wording formula that guarantees a useful response.

Course questions

What to know before you start.

How to give feedback that helps people improve: what can I do today?

Separate observation from interpretation. Original example: 'In the pricing review, the slide showed last month's figure. We paused to check which figure to use.' This is more checkable than 'You do not prepare' or a guess about the client's feelings. Ask and agree a repair. Try: 'Was the new file available? For the next review, can we put the source date beside the number?' Listen for missing access or a changed instruction before concluding that effort was the problem. Check timing and follow-through. Choose a private, appropriate setting and time to speak calmly. Later, check whether the source date and correct figure are present. Urgent safety or misconduct concerns may require the relevant workplace process.

Is this a fixed course?

No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.

Who is this course for?

Do I need any prior experience?

No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.

How long does it take?

Most courses run 7 to 30 lessons. The course length is sized to what you asked for. You set the pace: one lesson at a time, as often as you like. Lessons can be read or played as audio.

Does this course award a certificate or degree?

No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.