If you're a B2B sales leader aiming to inspire and motivate your team to achieve more faster, first consider how you yourself receive feedback.
Neuroscientific research suggests a direct connection between a leader's willingness to embrace feedback and the subsequent growth and performance of their team.
Based on our study conducted throughout 2022, we found that nearly 90% of leaders who actively received and integrated weekly feedback from peers or coaches witnessed their teams consistently achieving or surpassing business goals. This can be explained by the brain's ability to adapt and optimize behaviors in response to feedback, thereby driving individual and collective performance improvements.
Conversely, leaders who displayed dismissiveness, skepticism, or resistance to feedback were often associated with teams that experienced limited growth, unmet goals, reduced employee engagement, higher turnover rates, and diminished innovation.
Put plainly, defensive responses hinder open-mindedness and obstruct our ability to see and hear.
What's even more intriguing are the cascading effects of leaders who role-model receptive feedback behavior and habits. When leaders consistently demonstrate openness to feedback, employees tend to mirror that same openness, fostering more candid and more effective communication.
In conclusion, it's imperative that we leaders not only ask more from our teams but also reflect on our own receptivity and reactions to feedback. As you encourage your team to grow, ensure you're also priming your own brain for growth by embracing feedback. So, before you challenge your team, ensure you're embodying the principles you advocate and truly #walkingthetalk.
Comments