I have never been a fan of the performance review…the employee evaluation…the slow death brought about behind closed doors and over a fake pine desk… Yes, I realize I am being entirely overdramatic. But truth be told, my stomach is a little crampier than normal.
My 90-day review at Lake Pointe is tomorrow.
Fortunately, I work in a great environment & actually felt comfortable emailing my boss and expressing my nervousness. He replied back, “No worries.” I feel better. A little.
Something I have been learning is I am not perfect. I will always have room to improve in some area. I guess it’s something I’m not really learning but rather I’m learning to accept.
I just hate hearing it from someone else.
A Proverb says:
“Healthy correction is good, and if you accept it, you will be wise. You hurt only yourself by rejecting instruction, but it makes good sense to accept it.”
I suppose it’s pride that keeps me from accepting my faults. It’s not that I think I’m perfect; I know I am FAR from it. But if I realize my shortcomings…and you realize my shortcomings…let’s just trust each other enough that I’ll work on improving those areas…must we really discuss them?
We should. And we will. And I will pray for the courage to swallow the bad, ingest it entirely and work on the things I need to work on.
What do you think about employee evaluations? Do you dread them? Love them?
Have you ever been surprised in one – bad or good?
Have a great Friday…
Comments
28 responses to “The Review.”
Hi Anne–I really don’t like them and feel your pain. I have had great and horrible reviews. The biggest pain are surprises! “Why did you not say that to me earlier?!”
I have to give them now, as I have a staff team the past few years. It is really tough, but I find that if I am open with my team all the time, the review is not a surprise to the person–whether good or bad. Again, the surprises can kill.
Anne, as a business major at Texas A&M, I would probably tend to lean towards saying yes, I do like them. By way of encouragement I would like to remind you that these types of evaluations can be as much of a benefit to you as a detriment.
Also, just want to say that I am so thankful we don’t have to sit down with God on judgement day and undergo a performance evaluation. I would be horrified at that outcome. But hey, Isn’t it awesome that Jesus is the one who got the job done for us!
oh my gosh, this post makes me nervous just reading it! i have a strong dislike for almost anything related to meetings. and especially if the meeting has to do with my performance or something i’m working on. i’m always way sensitive to what might be said. i used to think that it was just a work thing, with the nervousness resulting from my assumption that i’m not quite making the cut (as i never quite feel that paying roles i’ve had fit me). but i’ve found that i experience a similar (though less pronounced) apprehension going into d’vine leadership meetings and meetings with our lead pastor also, even though most of the feedback i get there is positive and i totally feel like i’m doing what i’m supposed to be doing. i think it’s perfectionism that causes me to self-doubt a lot and then doubt some more. or fear of man. or hypersensitivity (the whole intuitive-feeling thing). at any rate, i hate those meetings…
i wish you peace for yours. :)
I hate them. Even though they are supposed to review the good and the bad. It always seems like 90% what you can improve on and the last 2 minutes, “by the way, you rock!!!”
Los
Almost any time we ineract with someone we are getting a perfomance evaluation. Interactions in the vocational setting are most often people letting us know what they need from us. Sometimes it is in their best interest to comply, sometimes not. I have also found that when I supervise people I don’t ofen surprise someone with informatin on their evaluation because we use a peer review system. The evaluation form is given to the whole team and responses are compiled on one ananomous form. Usually the employee is hardest on themselves, and knows in what areas they need to grow.
I also concur with Travis regarding the performance eval with God, Isn’t it comforting to know God looks at us and sees His loved one. Talk about neopostism at its best. May your day and eval be a profitable experience.
blessings,
shari
I love that it forces us to be uncomfortable…and then to grow. I love that it keeps us from just doing what we’ve always done. I love that it keeps us from apathy and makes it hard for things to continue to fester.
I’m a little uncomfortable with the spelling of fester though…
I hate employee reviews, no matter how pleased your boss is with you, the system is set up for them to find a flaw… They are, however, a necissary evil, and once the intial shock of your imperfection wears off, they’re a good learning experience. I had a job where I didn’t really get reviewed (the committee was too busy) and it did not end well to say the least… So keep em coming!
for the review process to be a good one, so much depends on the structure and accountability that is in place.
i mean, if everyone in the organization adheres to the same policies and expectations, the review process can be a powerful motivator, learning experience and in general, a useful thing.
if policy and expectations are not carefully guarded and managed, the review process can be abused and/or neglected, simply to be pulled back into engagement for power plays. definitely a double-edged sword.
i trust that your situation is a good one in this regard and suspect that you have nothing to fear but fear itself! :)
one of the pros about working 100% on commission…no evaluations. But, I still do get nervous anytime someone calls me into their office.
I’m ALIVE!!!!! It went really well. He only yelled at me twice and I only cried once. Just joking. It did go really well though. I should have all you guys evaulate me as a blogger. Do I post enough? Grammar and spelling accurate? Works well with others? :)
Reviews are always interesting… the only bad review that I got (that I wasn’t expecting) was actually my internship at Willow Creek… they said I wasn’t assertive enough and that I didn’t look for ways to add to the production enough… Funny thing is I thought they gave me plenty to do and I stayed busy the whole time I was there… Oh well, what do I know.
I’m glad your review went well Anne!
I sort of like reviews, but at the same time I hate them. What I mean is that I like knowing what areas I can improve on, but I sort of wish a person didn’t have to tell me. That’s the part that makes me nervous – responding well to the person that is telling me where I’m falling short.
It’s just awkward and weird.
So, I like to know where I can improve, but I just wish I could take a test or have a machine tell me or something…
Wow! It was weird to run across your blog today since our annual reviews just started at the church I work at in Austin Texas. I HATE them. I wonder if anyone other than my supervisor reads them. And how much does it really affect my pay increase?
I guess it’s the chance to be honest too about how your job is going. But so tedious too trying to get them done. All the same, I guess it’s one more thing that keeps us accountable.
I don’t take criticism well at all, even though it’s usually stuff I already know about myself and am totally prepared for it. I take everything so personally.
That being said, my reviews usually consist of my boss leaving the review sheet on my desk with all the 9 (out of 10) boxes checked (he says “only Jesus can get all 10’s) and a post-it note telling me to sign and return the sheet. Seriously.
Despite the fact I hate getting critiqued, I’d much rather at least get a little feedback than that. I think my boss is actually worse at dishing it than I am at giving it, so we both lose!
Churches have reviews? Where? I’m impressed someone actually takes church seriously enough to do them. I’m impressed. Accountability is good. Team formation is good. Did you actually get helpful feedback, or just get nervous for a pat on the back?
change your linkage (left side) for me please, darlin’
thanks!
I think the point that MeWhoElse brought up is pretty important. Why shouldn’t we have performance evaluations for church positions? Our church actually has job descriptions and performance evaluations for our volunteers though they are a little more informal than I would like. But people want feedback, especially if given in love and with the best interest of the body at heart. Glad yours went so well.
shari
Helpful feedback :) And some pats on the back. One thing I love about working at Lake Pointe is their desire to see people work within their strengths and passion. So they are constantly evaluating. Seeing where people shine, and placing them in environments where they can succeed…:)
you look a little high and too excited about it in that picture – but it is cute! :)
yeah, i wasn’t thrilled about it, but had to run to hang out with christina….i need to work on it some more :)
I feel your pain. It’s especially hard when you don’t work in a christian atmosphere. The only way I can get a raise is to have a good, once a year, performance review. First of all I’m reviewed by people who rarely see me during the week, and secondly no matter how good I really do they will only give me a satisfactory review. If they give me a really good review they have to give me more than the “standard three percent”. I had a great one this year excepte they held against me the fact that I use my sick days. hum, thought that was why you gave them to me. My goal this time was to not be defensive when critized. I try as you to swallow my pride, nod my head, and say, I’ll try to work on that. Knowing full well they have no idea what they are talking about.
[…] 3. today played host to my 90-day review. it’s hard to believe that my relocation to the southerlies has run its course for over three months. hard as it may be, i’ll go ahead and believe it. i wasn’t as anxious about the meeting as the aforementioned friend was when hers occured, but that’s probably because she made it a point from the first to prepare me for the ninetieth. […]
You guys do a wonderful job! Keep up the good work!!!!
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