I’m going to cover our most requested leadership topic:
"How do you give feedback without damaging trust?"
The answer is by building relationships with your team members. Ensure they know you genuinely care about them.
💡 The Vault Insight: People don’t trust feedback without trusting the person giving it first.
That means getting genuinely curious about what's important to them outside of work.
It means assuming positive intent instead of jumping to conclusions.
It means giving people the benefit of the doubt when something goes wrong.
It means regularly asking:
How can I better support you?
How do you think that conversation went?
What obstacles can I remove for you this week?
Notice that those questions aren't about evaluating them. They're about evaluating me.
When leaders consistently ask for feedback first, feedback stops feeling like something that's handed down from above. It becomes something both people exchange because they're trying to get better together.
If you're giving feedback to someone new—or someone you haven't built that relationship with yet—the next best thing is making sure they understand you're working toward the same goal.
Instead of making the conversation about who's right, make it about what you're both trying to accomplish.
When people believe you're serving the mission instead of protecting your ego, they're far more open to hearing what you have to say.
—Ashley Walton, CMO & Treadmill Desk Advocate
🎙️ The Biggest Mistake Hiring Managers Make
🛠️ Steal This Script for Your Next 1:1
When it's time to give feedback, I try to keep it incredibly simple.
"I'm noticing ________. Here's the impact it's having."
For example,
"I noticed you interrupted Sarah a few times in the meeting. The impact is that we may miss ideas she would have shared, and it can make people less willing to contribute next time."
A Question for You
Think about the best manager you've ever had. What made it easy to accept feedback from them?
I'd love to hear your answer. Just hit reply—I read every one.