Are you good at offering feedback?

If you lead in any capacity, providing employees feedback is one of your most important jobs. But are you actually good at it? Do you:

Attach expectations, specific deadlines, and concrete action items when you assign a task? No matter how insignificant the task, make sure your employees know exactly what you want them to do and by when.

Offer feedback objectively without inserting your biases? Or do you tailor your feedback based on how you feel about an employee? For example, have you ever withheld praise from an employee you don’t like? Or softened criticism for an employee you do like?

Do you set clear standards for evaluating performance—and do you apply them consistently? In other words, does everyone know exactly what they need to do to meet expectations? And are those expectations the same for everyone—or do some people get a pass?

You should have answered a resounding “Yes” for all three questions. If you couldn’t it’s time to make some changes.