Feedback Theatre
Speak up. Not like that.
You ask for feedback.
Then you flinch when it arrives.
Not the vague stuff. That’s fine. “Could improve.” “Some concerns.” Easy to absorb. Easy to ignore.
The specific stuff.
The kind with names. Behaviours. Patterns that don’t flatter you.
That’s where it gets managed.
“Let’s take that offline.” “Can we reframe that?” “Maybe there’s a more constructive way to say it.”
What you mean is: make it less dangerous.
So it gets softened. Diluted. Lost.
You thank people for their honesty.
You just don’t do anything with it.
Next time, they adjust.
Less detail. Less risk. Less truth.
Until feedback becomes a ritual. A performance of openness where nothing sharp enough to cut ever makes it through.
The real version still exists.
Just not where you can hear it.
And we pretend not to notice.
Blair Mcpherson former Director author and blogger blairmcpherson.co.uk
