Let’s be honest, feedback can sting. Even the most seasoned leaders, elite performers, and tactical professionals feel internal tension when someone says, “Can I give you some feedback?”
However, here’s the tactical truth: Being open to feedback isn’t just a soft skill; it’s a performance accelerator, a trust builder, and a leadership differentiator. Over two-plus decades of high-stakes leadership, from public safety operations to special operations, I’ve seen that the best teams aren’t just physically ready. They’re psychologically prepared to receive and act on honest feedback.
This article breaks down the science behind feedback receptiveness, explores common barriers, and offers actionable strategies to build a feedback-forward culture that enhances performance and psychological safety.
The Power of Being Feedback-Ready
Feedback is the fastest route to self-awareness and improvement. Research indicates that individuals who are open to feedback consistently outperform their peers, exhibit higher engagement, and foster stronger team relationships.
Insight 1: Individuals who seek and accept feedback improve faster, learn more, and perform better (Ashford & Cummings, 1983).
When I worked with tactical teams, feedback wasn’t a once-a-year thing; it was a moment-to-moment loop. Debriefs after missions, heat-of-the-moment corrections, and peer reviews created a culture where ego had to take a backseat so performance could take center stage.
Further studies confirm this:
Feedback openness correlates with stronger relationships and leadership credibility (DeCelles, DeRue, Margolis, & Ceranic, 2012).
Receptivity enhances job satisfaction and reduces the risk of turnover (DeRue & Ashford, 2010).
High-feedback environments foster creativity and innovation, especially in volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) contexts (DeRue & Ashford, 2010).
Why Do So Many Resist Feedback?
Despite the benefits, resistance to feedback is a common phenomenon. The reasons are deeply human and profoundly limiting if left unaddressed.
Top barriers include:
Fear of criticism: People often equate feedback with failure rather than an opportunity for growth.
Lack of trust: When people doubt the motives or credibility of the feedback giver, they shut down.
Defensiveness: If someone’s identity is tightly tied to being right, feedback feels like a threat.
Vulnerability: Feedback exposes blind spots, and for many, that feels too risky.
In high-stress professions, the armor we wear to survive can sometimes block the very insights we need to evolve.
Building a Culture Where Feedback Fuels Performance
To normalize feedback as fuel (not fire), leaders must be intentional in shaping culture. Here’s how:
1. Establish Clear Feedback Norms
Make it crystal clear how, when, and why feedback happens. Ambiguity breeds anxiety. Structure fosters safety.
2. Model the Growth Mindset
Feedback isn’t about what’s wrong with you; it’s about what’s possible for you. Encourage this mindset at every level.
Insight 2: A growth mindset transforms feedback from judgment into a learning opportunity (Dweck, 2006).
3. Build Trust and Psychological Safety
Trust is the precondition for feedback to be heard. Leaders must go first by receiving feedback openly and showing others that it’s safe to do the same.
4. Champion Diverse Perspectives
Welcome feedback from all levels. Feedback loops shouldn’t flow top-down only; everyone should have the authority to contribute to improving the system.
5. Train the Skill, Not Just the Attitude
Giving and receiving feedback well is a skill. Provide training on active listening, framing criticism constructively, and asking clarifying questions without defensiveness.
Insight 3: Effective feedback cultures are intentionally designed, not passively hoped for (DeRue & Ashford, 2010).
Tactical Insight: Feedback Is a Mirror, Not a Weapon
Feedback, at its best, reflects reality to us, not to wound us, but to sharpen us. And leaders who wield feedback with compassion, clarity, and courage create the kind of environments where people want to improve.
Here’s the rule I live by when giving feedback:
Be kind. Be clear. Be catalytic.
Kindness preserves dignity.
Clarity removes confusion.
Catalytic feedback moves people forward, not backward.
Call to Action: Make Feedback a MAGNUS Moment
Ask yourself:
Do I invite feedback or avoid it?
Do I model how to receive it with grace and grit?
Does my team feel safe giving me honest feedback?
The organizations that thrive tomorrow will be the ones that build feedback into their daily operating rhythm today. It won’t just be a performance tool; it’ll be a cultural code. One that turns awkward moments into breakthrough growth. Because feedback, when done right, doesn’t just inform; it transforms.
References
Ashford, S. J., & Cummings, L. L. (1983). Feedback as an individual resource: Personal strategies of creating information. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 32(3), 370–398. https://doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(83)90156-3
DeCelles, K. A., DeRue, D. S., Margolis, J. D., & Ceranic, T. L. (2012). Does power corrupt or enable? When and why power facilitates self-interested behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(3), 681–689. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026811
DeRue, D. S., & Ashford, S. J. (2010). Who will lead and who will follow? A social process of leadership identity construction in organizations. Academy of Management Review, 35(4), 627–647. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.35.4.zok627
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.