Since effective performance evaluations are done with the employee, not to them, a significant part of the review is the employee’s self-evaluation of their performance.
It’s not rocket science, but there does have to be some effort put in to make it good. Unfortunately, some provide the bare minimum, while others write at length about what they accomplished that year (hint – the sweet spot is somewhere in the middle).
The ones I find most challenging are those who consistently rate themselves at the top of the scale on everything. Don’t get me wrong, I like an exceptional performer! I just have yet to meet someone who has reached perfection.
That reminds me of someone I once managed – let’s call him Jack.
Meet Jack
To his credit, Jack was a very high performer and typically met or exceeded his goals. He was friendly, collaborative, and produced quality work. And each year, he rated himself as ‘superior’ on all aspects of his performance review, providing examples to support his ratings. And while it was all true, it omitted aspects of performance that could improve or be further developed.
After a few frank discussions, Jack and I were able to define what it was that was ‘missing’ from his self-evaluation, and why it mattered. After all, hitting all your goals and being a good co-worker doesn’t mean that errors aren’t made along the way. There’s always room for growth and development.
How to Craft a Strong Self-Evaluation
To craft a self-evaluation, be sure to:
- Keep track of hits and misses throughout the review period
- Take enough time to write the evaluation
- Have a mentor, trusted colleague or friend read over the draft
- Acknowledge mistakes and what was learned from them
- Be clear about career goals
Sometimes it’s hard to start, I get it. To get your gears turning, here are three examples of how self-evaluations take shape – including both the achievements and opportunities to improve.
Three Examples of Self-Evaluations
Self-Evaluation Example 1: Discussing Your Creativity
Achievement:
- I do a lot of research and look at what our competitors are doing to develop fresh ideas to help my team. Before every stand-up or brainstorming session, I find out what the agenda is and come up with a list of ideas that could be helpful.
- Doing this keeps me on my toes and helps me devise creative ways to carry out tasks and improve the company's overall output.
The area I need to work on:
- I consider myself a very creative person with many great ideas. However, I battle with impostor syndrome and don't share my thoughts as much as I'd like, especially this past year. I'm working on my confidence and overcoming impostor syndrome.
Self-Evaluation Example 2: Discussing Your Communication Skills
Achievement:
- I'm intentional about communicating with my team members and line manager. I promptly send all my updates and feedback using the company's assigned communication channels.
- On such occasions when I cannot meet a deadline in time, I ensure that I inform all affected parties ahead of time and let them know what difficulties I'm having and the new timeline for delivery.
The area I need to work on:
- I sometimes find it challenging to ask for help from my colleagues on a group task because I don't want to burden them. However, I’m learning that part of effective communication is asking for help, especially on a collaborative project.
Self-Evaluation Example 3: Discussing Your Time Management
Achievement:
- I evaluate my project's complexity and plan so that I finalize the milestones according to their deadlines.
- Even when working from home or remotely, I maintain a work environment that doesn’t distract me from my job.
- I know the difference between important and urgent; this helps me establish my priorities and decide which tasks can be postponed or delayed and which cannot.
The area I need to work on:
- I recognize that I need to improve my time-management abilities. I often tend to overwork certain tasks while others remain unfinished. I plan to use the time-blocking strategy from now on, using my calendar to assign focused time.
- I know where I tend to struggle with time management: I often leave tasks that I find too challenging last; I will put systems in place to remind me of my commitments.
Like I said, it’s not rocket science. When I made that same reference to Jack, he told me that his mom is a Rocket Scientist and that it didn’t look that difficult. Chalk it up to one more area Jack and I view differently.