Feedback Is Just Data

Last Friday night, I had the pleasure of being MC at the Central Coast Business Awards here in North West Tasmania. It was a great night celebrating local businesses, but one theme kept coming through. It's all about the people.

It got me thinking about awards, recognition and something that many business owners struggle with. Negative feedback.

Our businesses are like our babies

When you own a business, it's not just a job. You've poured your time, money, energy and emotion into building it. In many ways, our businesses are like our babies.

So when someone criticises your business, it can hurt. A negative Google review, an unhappy customer or an employee telling you something isn't working can feel like a personal attack.

Our natural reaction is often to defend ourselves, explain why they're wrong or dismiss what they're saying.

But what if that feedback is exactly what we need to hear?

Feedback is just data

One of the things I talk about regularly is that feedback is just data. It's information, and information helps us make better decisions.

Not every complaint is justified, and we don't have to agree with everything we're told. But if we can take the emotion out of the feedback, we might discover something valuable.

A customer complaining about slow quotes might be highlighting a broken process. An employee questioning how something is done might have found a better way.

The question is whether we're prepared to listen.

Ask the questions that matter

Instead of waiting for feedback, go looking for it.

Ask your customers and your team three questions:

1. What are we doing well?
2. What could we do better?
3. What should we stop doing?

Then listen without defending yourself. Look for patterns and take action where it makes sense.

The Business Bloke's takeaway

Awards and five-star reviews are wonderful. They recognise what we're doing right.

But the feedback that hurts might be the feedback that helps us grow.

Here's my question for you: When was the last time you deliberately asked someone what your business could be doing better?

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