“What feedback do you have for me?” is a commonly used feedback question that doesn’t perform well because of how open ended it is.
Two kinds of constraints help.
(1) “Do you have any feedback for me on the structure of my presentation?”
(2) “If you had to pick one thing that went well in that meeting and one thing that you’d suggest I do differently, what would you pick?”
Variant (1) puts a clear constraint on scope. Variant (2) puts a constraint on the amount of feedback you’re seeking – in effect helping the giver prioritize.
If you’re not getting high quality feedback, it might just be time to revisit the questions being asked.
Constraints and focus in our questions are leading indicators of clarity.
