Dont Fight the Feedback!

When going through 360 feedback, I often hear people say "well, it doesn't really matter what people say about me because its only perception - its not really real".

Of course, we know that this is a form of defense, a denial in order to make us feel better about ourselves and to justify the fact that we don't want to change. We don't want to have to come out of our 'comfort zone' and face the discomfort of moving into our 'stretch zone'.

Essentially, we are indicating a fear of change when we deny the importance of the feedback. Psychologically speaking, we have experienced an attack on our identity and we do everything to resist and repel that attack!

To the philosophers, however, this question of 'what is reality?' presents a juicy opportunity for debate. As leaders intent on polishing our leadership skills, however, we are not so interested in having the definitive answer to that question.

Whatever the reality of perception, what is undeniably true is that the consequences of others' perceptions certainly are real and we are the ones who will have to deal with them.

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