# Prepare your performance review with confidence A review is a chance to look back on a whole year, in just one hour. Feeling a little tense is part of it, whether you are being reviewed or writing the review. Most of what makes these conversations go well happens beforehand: knowing which examples you will bring, and what you want the other person to leave with. ## How do I prepare for my performance review? Bring back the whole year, not just the last few weeks. Pick two or three examples and decide what you want to have said and heard by the end of the conversation. Set aside an hour a few days ahead, not the evening before. 1. ### Bring back the whole year Go through your calendar, notes and emails month by month. Otherwise the spring is barely in view, even though it counts just as much. 2. ### Pick two or three examples Choose results you are proud of and one where things did not go smoothly. For each, write down what happened, what you did and what came of it. [As a reflection: Writing my self-assessment](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-self-assessment) 3. ### Decide what you want from the conversation One sentence is enough, for example: "I want to know what I still need for the next level." It helps when the conversation gets stuck on the rating. [As a reflection: Preparing for the conversation](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-prepare-review) 4. ### Expect a different view Think about where the person reviewing you might see the year differently, and which example you would show then. That way criticism does not catch you off guard. [As a reflection: Disagreeing with my review](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-disagree-with-review) 5. ### Bring one wish for next year One area you want to work on and what you need for it: a project, training, backing. Otherwise others decide what next year is about. [As a reflection: What to work on next](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-development-goal) 6. ### Share your topics ahead of time A day or two before, send the points you want to raise. Then there is time set aside for them, and nobody is surprised. Leading the conversation yourself or writing the review? The same steps help from the other side of the table. [As a reflection: Writing a fair review](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-write-review) ## What you can say, and what you don't have to Most worries before a review come down to the same few questions. Here are short answers. For questions about your employment rights, HR, an employee representative or legal advice can help; this page doesn't replace them. - ### Do I have to talk a lot? No. Prepare two or three points you will raise no matter what, and let the rest come. Listening and asking questions count just as much. - ### Should I criticise myself? One thing that didn't go well shows that you look at your year honestly. Say what you took from it. You don't need to bring a list of your weaknesses. - ### Can I say that I'm unhappy? Yes, if you say what's behind it and what would help. "Since the summer I've been missing work I can grow in" moves the conversation further than "I'm unmotivated". How much you share about your private life is up to you. - ### Can I bring up pay? Yes. Mention the topic in advance so there's time for it, and bring examples that show how your work has changed. Some companies discuss pay in a separate meeting. If yours does, ask when it is. [As a reflection: Asking for a promotion](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-promotion-case) - ### Do I have to respond to everything on the spot? No. You can say: "I'd like to look at this properly and get back to you by Friday." Especially with criticism or a rating that surprises you, that's often the better answer. [As a reflection: Disagreeing with my review](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-disagree-with-review) - ### What if I'm worried it's about something serious? Ask beforehand what the conversation is meant to cover. It's a normal question and often takes a lot of the pressure off. If you feel treated unfairly or your job is at stake, get support from HR, an employee representative or legal advice. [As a reflection: Feeling uneasy](https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews#situation-uneasy-before-review) ## Which situation are you in? ### You are being reviewed Your own year is the topic: before the conversation, during it and afterwards. - #### My review conversation is coming up and I want to prepare What do you want to have said, and heard, by the end of the hour? > I want to leave knowing how my manager sees the past year, and having said clearly what I want to work on next... - #### I feel uneasy about the conversation Write down what you know for sure and what you only suspect. After that, it's usually clearer what you want to say and what you don't have to. > All I know for sure: the meeting is on Thursday, and one of my projects didn't go well in the spring. That it's about that project is only my guess; nobody has said so... - #### I have to write my self-assessment What did this year teach you that a list of tasks wouldn't show? > When the delay became clear, I tried to make up the time myself instead of raising it early... - #### My review doesn't match how I see my year Hurt is a fair first reaction. The useful second one is finding the one assessment you really see differently, and the examples that show it. > The rating reduces my year to one moment, and I don't know what I should do differently. - #### I want to make the case for a promotion or raise Asking for more can feel unfamiliar. Evidence turns it into a conversation about your work. > For a year I have been leading the payments topic, which is part of the next level's role description... ### You are writing or giving reviews For anyone who assesses other people's work, with or without a management title. - #### I have to write a review and want it to be fair What happened in March? A fair review reaches back past the last few weeks. > In two of three handovers the documentation was missing, and open issues only came up when someone asked... - #### I want to say more than “great job” Specific praise shows the person what to keep doing. > She split the migration into weekly steps, raised risks early and documented every step for the rest of the team... - #### I've been asked for feedback on a colleague's review Nothing in the past year can change now. One or two suggestions she can try next year help her more than a list of mistakes. > Lea commits to dates only after estimating the effort with us, and other teams can rely on what she promises... ### You are looking at next year Reviews also look forward: at goals, and at what you want to learn. - #### Next year's goals feel unrealistic Easier to raise now, while the goals are still a draft. > This year the same team shipped 14 releases, and about a third of our time went into support... - #### I don't know what to work on next year From a vague wish to a first concrete step. > So far I have taken part in reviews but never led one, and I hold back when senior colleagues disagree... ### Something else around your review? Find a fitting method with a few questions. [Find a fitting method](https://www.reflacto.com/decide) If this is about more than a different view of the year and you feel treated unfairly, you can get support, for example from HR or the works council. ## What makes reviews easier - Keep the whole year in view. Recent weeks are easier to recall than the start of the year. Notes from across the year give a fairer picture, of others and of yourself. - Raise important things early. Feedback works best while it is still fresh. What matters to you is worth raising before the review. - Keep the conversation bigger than the rating. A number or label draws a lot of attention. Decide beforehand what you most want the other person to take away. - Write it down before you respond. In an hour full of feedback, not everything sticks equally well. Note what was said, praise as much as criticism, and take some time before you respond. ![Portrait of Daniel Schmeiß](https://www.reflacto.com/daniel-144.webp) > “No surprises.” A good review sums up the year for both sides and brings clarity for the next one. It shouldn't surprise anyone. What I would do differently today I should have started much earlier to write down my goals and results regularly, perhaps once a month. It helps with or without a management title: you go into the conversation better prepared, get more out of it for yourself, and can show your manager more than they expect. And next year's plan builds on something tangible. Daniel Schmeiß[More about Daniel and Reflacto](https://www.reflacto.com/about) ## More background ### The methods behind these reflections - [GROW Model – Preparing for the conversation · Feeling uneasy · What to work on next](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/grow) - [What? So What? Now What? – Writing my self-assessment](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/what-so-what-now-what) - [SBI Feedback Model: Situation, Behavior, Impact – Disagreeing with my review · Writing a fair review · More than “great job”](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/sbi) - [Prepare for Stakeholder Alignment – Asking for a promotion](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/alignment-canvas) - [Feedforward: Plan the next attempt – Feedback for a colleague](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/feedforward-coaching) - [BOUND: Reset expectations – Unrealistic goals](https://www.reflacto.com/frameworks/bound) ### From the blog - [I should have told you sooner – SBI model · 4 min read](https://www.reflacto.com/blog/i-should-have-told-you-sooner) - [Have you told them yourself? – Nonviolent Communication · 4 min read](https://www.reflacto.com/blog/have-you-told-them-yourself) --- Original page: https://www.reflacto.com/moments/performance-reviews